


Threads of Fate

by Madrigal_in_training



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M, Female Uzumaki Naruto, Hiashi the Gossip, Minato and Kushina's Story Retold, Naruto Has Friends, No Uchiha Massacre, Shisui the Matchmaker, Team as Family, Uchiha Sasuke & Uzumaki Naruto Friendship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-16
Updated: 2017-09-16
Packaged: 2018-12-30 09:20:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 13
Words: 61,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12105588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Madrigal_in_training/pseuds/Madrigal_in_training
Summary: In an attempt to brighten up his sad charge, ANBU Guard Itachi Uchiha leaves a note complimenting her hair. And thus, history has decided to repeat itself. Itachi x fem!Naruto, ItaNaru





	1. Chapter 1

Itachi Uchiha eyed the curled up bundle of orange on the bed with trepidation. He had been assigned guard duty for the Uzumaki, ever since the femur in his right thigh was shattered in an ANBU mission in Kusa. While Itachi was expected to make a full recovery, his supervisors had decided to err on the side of caution, and gave him an in-village mission, with minimal danger. The first fews day of watching Konoha’s jinchuuriki were an interesting, if somewhat tedious, chore, and the Uchiha hadn’t minded doing so.

 

Now though, Naruto was fully burrowed under two blankets and a thick blue comforter, furiously rubbing away the tears that kept falling down her eyes. Her angel-gold hair was poking out of the top, like a spiky halo, and had the choppy, uneven, and blunt cut of an inexperienced barber. The teasing that Naruto received from her classmates about her haircut was why she was hiding away under the covers, despite the hot Fire Country weather outside.

 

‘ _ If she doesn’t get out soon, then she may get a heatstroke, _ ’ Itachi thought, unhappily. 

 

As a secret ANBU Guard, he wasn’t supposed to intervene with his charge, or, for that matter, form an attachment. However, Naruto was a sweet, if mischievous, girl, and Itachi could easily liken her to his foolish little brother. In the short time that he had observed her, the Uchiha realized that Naruto was optimistic, stubborn, and refused to let anything get her down, whether that be the indifference of the village or her own isolated upbringing. She rarely cried, and Itachi could admire that type of fortitude in a seven-year-old.

 

‘ _ She’s still only seven though, and children- especially the girls at the Academy- can be cruel, _ ’ Itachi mused, ‘ _ Should I- ah, it seems that I don’t have to. _ ’

 

Naruto had stopped crying for now, and crawled out of her impromptu heat-suffused burrow. With puffy red eyes, blotchy wet cheeks, and an expression of unyielding defiance, the blonde girl shuffled into the kitchen and took out a large cardboard box. Inside, Itachi knew, were all manner of pranking supplies, from pre-made paint bombs to hijacked school supplies to homemade stained dye.

 

That was another trait that Itachi admired. Naruto always tried to be as prepared as possible for her self-chosen crusade against bullies. 

 

‘ _ It’s a shame that being a jinchuuriki will push her into a front-line combat specialty, _ ’ the Uchiha considered, taking out a pocky from the package hidden in his sleeve, and taking a bite, ‘ _ Between her utter disregard for another person’s property, advanced stealth skills, and natural talent for vandalism, the Uzumaki would make an excellent sabotager.’ _

 

A specialty in sabotage wouldn’t get her the Hokage hat though, which was something that Naruto repeatedly (and loudly) proclaimed would be hers someday, so maybe that was for the best. Itachi didn’t actually think that Naruto would become Hokage. He didn’t doubt her loyalty to the village or  underestimate her potential to be a kunoichi- every other stable jinchuuriki had been S-rank after all- but the Uchiha had an estimate of her personality. Naruto thrived on action, and the minute she learned the full extent of paperwork the Hokage was responsible for, her interest in that position would drastically wane.

 

Itachi idly returned to snacking, as he continued his silent observation of Konoha’s jinchuuriki. As she began plotting her revenge against her peers, the Uchiha’s previous trepidation slowly returned. Naruto’s pranks occasionally straddled the line between harmless amusement and resentful humiliation, but trapping children’s underclothes with poison ivy was unnecessarily cruel. It could have been one of many plans, that Naruto might never employ, but, judging from the stray tear that she viciously rubbed off, Itachi doubted it.

 

The young prodigy was aware of jinchuuriki that had been isolated to the point of madness, and wondered if he was the beginnings of one unfold before his eyes. This was a mere suspicion though, and Itachi could hardly bring it to the Hokage’s attention. Even if he did, what was to be done? The Sandaime couldn’t hold the girl on suspicion without validating the beliefs of all of her detractors, and the Hokage didn’t have the power to force people to be kind of her.

 

No, the underlying problem that Naruto Uzumaki would always face- that every jinchuuriki faced- was the difficulty in making a steadfast, loyal friend. 

 

‘ _ I wonder if I can convince Sasuke that blonde girls are an exemption from the cootie rule? _ ’ Itachi had an unquestionable faith in the Yondaime Hokage’s seal. If the man had not believed it to be the best, then he would not have placed it on his own daughter, after all.

 

Nevertheless, a friendship between the savvy, ambitious, and hypersensitive Uzumaki girl, and his foolish little brother, who had been… er, somewhat coddled by Itachi, was destined for disaster. Sasuke was a kind-hearted boy, but he was too immature to deal with the repercussions of befriending the village’s jinchuuriki. And, if Itachi was being strictly honest to himself, the tiny blonde girl would eat his brother up alive. 

 

The dark-haired teen realized that his current box of pocky had been picked clean, and an almost unnoticeable frown of displeasure crossed his face. Despite the knowledge that he had only packed one package for this shift, the genius boy hopefully shifted through his pockets again. Jutsu scroll, explosive tag, kunai, kunai, kunai, shuriken, roll of bandages, a pen, his mother’s usual ‘stay safe, I love you’ note, and… an idea popped into Itachi’s head.

 

Taking out the pen, he ripped one edge of the pocky pack, and scribbled a quick note on the smooth cardboard surface. 

 

x

 

It was several hours later until Naruto discovered the note. She had been getting ready for bed, while reviewing the final details of her awesome future prank against Rei, and her little band of sycophants. Most of the girl’s ire had bled through the day, but she still intended to go through the retaliatory prank. Her classmates would either learn to keep their mouths shut about Naruto’s blatantly foreign looks of their own violation, or the blonde would  _ make _ them learn.

 

So what if her neon yellow hair was a common trait in citizens from Kumogakure? So what if not a single clan in Konoha had whisker marks on their cheeks? So what if she didn’t know who her parents were- or that they were probably no-name refugees from the Third Shinobi War? She was Naruto Uzumaki, dammit, and she was going to be the Hokage anyway!

 

Naruto was so immersed in her fantasies of sobbing seven-year-old’s frantically clawing at themselves, that she almost missed the note on her dresser. Next to a battered hairbrush and a handful of orange candies, was a square-shaped piece of cardboard that poked her curiosity. The Uzumaki turned it around in her hand- one side had an advert for strawberry pocky, and the other had a graceful, masculine script that far surpassed her own writing.

 

_ ‘I think your golden hair makes you look like a Yosei.’ _

 

A Yosei? Her? Someone thought that she looked like one of the immortal woodland sprites renowned for their beauty?

 

Immediately, a deep red blush suffused Naruto’s tanned cheeks. She caught a strand of unkempt blond hair, and rolled it between her fingers. The Uzumaki had never really liked her bright, eye-catching hair. It had been yet another reminder of how she was different from her classmates, with their normal brown or blonde or black hair. Even the students with more exotic colors, like Ami with her purple hair, had a subdued, dark shade, wholly unlike Naruto’s searing hue. It was strange and uncomfortable and dissimilar, and, and…

 

_ I think your golden hair makes you look like a Yosei.  _

 

And someone thought it was pretty enough to liken it to a mythological race of beautiful nature sprites. Naruto’s blush darkened, as she studied the words on the paper again. There was a squirming feeling in her belly, but it felt nice, similar to the one Naruto got before she was about to dig into a fresh bowl of Ichiraku Ramen. No one had ever complimented her hair before, but now the blonde girl had a note that proved-

 

A note. In her bedroom. When she hadn’t invited anyone over to her apartment in weeks.

 

Naruto Uzumaki barely stifled her scream, as she spun around to look wildly around the room. Her back pressed against the dresser, and her pulse quickened, as blue eyes scanned the bed, the half-open closet, the door leading into the bathroom…

 

‘ _ There was an intruder in my apartment, _ ’ Naruto thought, heartbeat thudding in her ears, ‘ _ There was an intruder in my freaking  _ bedroom _! _ ’ 

 

She wasn’t the most academic of students, but Naruto had paid enough attention to the Academy’s tracking lessons to know that her senses were a notch above the other students. They weren’t nearly as good as that boy with the purple fangs tattooed to his cheeks, but she could still learn something from them. The blonde girl took a few tentative sniffs of the air, and grimaced at the smell of unwashed laundry and rotting fruit that returned back to her. Maybe she should invest more time in keeping her apartment clean?

 

Naruto’s nose could determine a few other scents. Kunai polish, training sweat, ramen broth, and something a little like ashes and peppermint. The last two couldn’t belong to the Old Man- he had a distinct paper and ink smell around him- and they definitely weren’t hers. Unfortunately, they weren’t faded scents either. 

 

Her compliment-giving stalker was in the apartment with her.

 

Naruto was cautious, so she slowly edged out a blunt kunai from atop her dresser, and clutched it to her chest. Naruto was also reckless, because she then opened her mouth. “Come out, stalker! I know that you’re here!”

 

Her reply was utter and complete silence. Feeling a bit foolish, she scowled. “Stop being a coward, and face me like a man! I know you’re here, dammit!”

 

Nothing.

 

“Breaking and entering is an illegal offense!”

 

Nothing. 

 

“The KMPF will get involved! The Uchiha will sort you out!”

 

Nothing.

 

“I’ll gut you with my kunai!”

 

Nothing.

 

“...Please?”

 

When there was yet another response of nothing, the blonde girl’s fear gave away to a feeling of indignation. If her stalker didn’t want to show himself, then  _ she _ would find him. Her nose sniffed the air again, but the ashes and peppermint scent had been evenly dispersed throughout her room, and, as she slowly crept out, the living room as well. Since this wasn’t a natural phenomena, Naruto guessed that her stalker had employed a jutsu.

 

She huffed. “You want to play it that way? Fine! I’m getting the Old Man.”

 

The Uzumaki used slow and steady steps to walk out of her apartment, but as soon as she reached the door, she bolted. Although she didn’t know it, her ashes-and-peppermint stalker kept pace easily, and hid behind a Chameleon jutsu as she tattled about his presence to the Hokage.

 

The Sandaime showed just how clearly this accusation flustered him, by not showing any emotion at all. With an inward sigh, and a discrete pointed look at the sheepish ANBU agent, Hiruzen Sarutobi sat his honorary granddaughter down. One rapid explanation about how she had important, shinobi parents that necessitated a guard, and then several longer refusals to reveal their identities, later, Naruto was content. 

 

She wasn’t  _ happy _ , but at least now she knew that her parents hadn’t been some no-name refugees to Konoha. Her colouring was still distinct, and Naruto briefly entertained a thought to launch her own search into her heritage, but the Old Man made her promise not to. When Naruto returned to her apartment, after making the Hokage swear that none of his agents would watch her undress or enter her bedroom again, she made an immediate beeline to the note.

 

Hiding in a little girl’s bedroom, Naruto maintained, was still a creepy thing to do. But this ANBU agent was a shinobi who had been ordered to protect her by the Old Man, and well… the compliment was nice. The blush returned to her cheeks as Naruto considered the first kind words to have ever been given for her unusual hair colouring. They made the break-in far more palatable.

 

_ ‘Maybe I should reply back?’ _ Naruto wondered, her round-face approaching tomato-levels of redness, ‘ _ I could leave it on top of the T.V., so he knows not to enter my bedroom again. _ ’

 

Rather embarrassed by her own uncharacteristic indecisiveness, Naruto grit her teeth and reached for a pen. She was going to be the Hokage, and that meant she had to be brave. So, blisteringly hot cheeks and squirming stomach aside, Naruto Uzumaki penned the first of many future messages.


	2. Chapter 2

Itachi’s fingers curled around the pilfered piece of school-lined notebook paper in his hand, as he wondered whether or not he should reply. On one hand, the Uchiha had gotten chewed out by the Sandaime for his initial lapse in security, but, on the other hand, the Hokage had never expressly forbidden him from continuing his messages. The question on the paper wasn’t too personal, but Itachi had never been one to release any information about himself, even one as innocuous as that pertaining to his food preferences.

 

_ ‘You were eating strawberry pocky, but you smell like peppermints. Which one is your favorite flavor?’ _

 

The dark-haired boy had been the one to initiate their conversation, so Naruto might be offended if he didn’t continue. Finally, the knowledge that that Itachi would have to continue taking her guard shifts for another two weeks, and, therefore, would be subject to her depressed attitude, made him react.

 

_ ‘Neither. My favorite pocky flavor is chocolate. Which flavor do you prefer?’ _

 

x

 

Naruto had been too distracted by her mysterious ANBU source of unexpected compliments to go through with the poison ivy prank. Instead, she was distracted and beaming all throughout the day, which only seemed to make Rei and her friends even more nervous. Ignoring their pallid faces, the Uzumaki nearly ran home and fumbled with the keys to her apartment door. When she finally got in, her eyes fell on the TV, where a slip of white paper laid.

 

As Naruto crept closer, she could see that it was an unopened box of chocolate pocky, with a note pinned neatly to the top with a senbon.

 

_ ‘This ANBU must be very good with accuracy,’  _ Naruto observed, hand hovering over the tiny needle weapon. She picked up the pocky, note and all, and fled to her bedroom, where she knew that she would be alone. 

 

Itachi Uchiha, who was forced to wait patiently in the living room, found this irritating, for reasons that he cared not to explore.

 

Naruto carefully unpinned the senbon, and placed it neatly beside her hairbrush. She never used one of those weapons before, and wanted to observe it at length later. Then she quietly read the words on her note, with a smile on her face. It wasn’t another compliment, but a question meant that he expected a reply, which was even better!

 

Itachi was left to wait in the other room, wondering what in Kami’s name, Naruto Uzumaki would spend the next hour in her room doing. She simply needed to change out of her Academy clothes, did she not? How could that possibly take so long?

 

Naruto though, hadn’t bothered to change out of her white-and-orange shirt or dark blue pants. Instead, she carefully wrote out a reply, frowned down at it, tossed it in the trash, and repeated. By the time she was done, a half-full trash can of crumpled balls of paper gave credence to her effort.

 

It remained a simple question, but Naruto was still nervous as she folded it into an origami crane, and put it on top of the TV. She would proceed to glance at it every few seconds for the next hour, but it was after a moment of inattention as she made herself lunch, that Naruto realized it had disappeared.

 

‘ _ Well, the ball’s in his court, now, _ ’ Naruto thought, stomach fluttering with nerves. She opened up her box of pocky, and took a tentative bite. ‘ _ I think that I’m making a friend. _ ’

 

x

 

Shisui Uchiha raised one eyebrow as he came across his best friend, Itachi, in a rather strange pose. The clan’s heir was staring down at a rumpled piece of paper on his lap, with a stare that was so intense that Shisui wouldn’t be surprised if the paper was set aflame. If Itachi had the Mangekyo, then it probably would have burst into fire even.

 

The older boy angled his head down as he walked forward, wanting to see the undoubtedly difficult mathematical equation or philosophical question that was stumping his genius cousin. He didn’t bother to consider the ethical ramifications of poking his nose into what was certainly not his business. Shisui was a shinobi, and, more so, he was an Uchiha. This was what they did.

 

Itachi heard his footsteps, which was typical, but then he quickly hid the sheet of paper, which was not. 

 

“Need any help?” Shisui offered, because now he genuinely was curious about the paper.

 

“No,” Itachi’s mellow voice was as polite as ever, but a sliver of dissatisfaction crossed the teen’s face. If he had been anyone else, Shisui would have even called that expression ‘mulish’. 

 

“Are you sure?” Shisui pestered, falling into step by the almost fleeing Uchiha heir, “I’m very good with mathematics.”

 

“...It’s not a math problem.”

 

“Well, I don’t think there’s a history question that could ever stump you, but we can bounce strategy off of old man Setsuna,” Shisui bounced on his feet.

 

“No, thank you.” Itachi’s mouth drooped down, into what Shisui would have called a pout on any other individual. “This isn't an academic question.”

 

“All the better,” Shisui had a grin on his face, “Want to share with me?”

 

Itachi didn’t immediately offer a reply, but the older Uchiha remained optimistic nonetheless. His younger cousin was the type to contemplate almost every avenue of action, as befitting his introspective nature, before responding. His patience was awarded when the other boy answered, almost making Shisui no Shunshin trip over his own two feet.

 

“Shisui, what is my favorite color?”

 

‘ _ I like orange pocky, because orange is my favorite color. What’s yours? _ ’

 

x

 

Itachi had put careful thought into his response. He didn’t want to choose red, because that was cliche for an Uchiha, and reminded him of bloodied shinobi and deadly fire jutsu anyway. Blue was nice, but could be linked to the Uzumaki’s eyes, which might be interpreted the wrong way. Same for yellow and orange. The dark-haired teen associated green with an eccentric taijutsu master, black with assassination corpse scrolls, brown with the Doton jutsu he always had difficulty mastering, white with Uchiha mourning clothes, purple with a choking body, and pink with his mother’s bright cheeks when she was furious with either him or Sasuke. 

 

In the end, he had chosen a dignified, peaceful, and understated color that reminded him of the misty fog around the Naka River.

 

Naruto did not see it that way. ‘ _ His favorite color is gray?! I’m getting the feeling that this guy is a really boring person. _ ’

 

There wasn’t another box of pocky waiting for her, but the note had been pinned with another high-quality senbon. Naruto carefully placed the weapon beside her sole other senbon, and penned another note. This one was far easier than the last, because the blonde girl had spent nearly the entirety of her class doddling potential questions in her notebook. The Academy sensei didn’t call her out on it, since none of her teachers particularly liked acknowledging her existence, but Naruto had been too absorbed in her own giddiness to care.

 

On another note, Rei Fukui and her friends had never been more creeped out then by the cheerful grin on the deadlast’s face.

 

‘ _ My favorite food is ramen, especially the miso ramen at Ichiraku. My least favorite food is vegetables. What foods do you like or dislike? _ ’

 

x

 

There was a sense of relief, as Itachi looked down at the next message. This was one that didn’t trigger an identity crisis to reply to. 

 

‘ _ My favorite foods are cabbage and onigiri with seaweed in it. My least favorite food is steak, but that’s unfortunately what I’m eating now. You should try more vegetables. They’re necessary for a healthy body, and they don’t taste too bad if you decide to steam or stir-fry them. What’s your favorite part of the day? Mine is early in the morning, before anyone else is awake. _ ’

 

“Itachi, I told you that there’s no paperwork allowed on the dinner table!” the Matriarch of the Uchiha Clan’s usual melodic and polite tone had hardened with irritation. “Dinner is a time for us to come together as a family, and I refuse to tolerate any work done at that time.”

 

“Yes, Kaa-san,” Itachi replied, folding the paper up and slipping it into his pocket. He didn’t bother to protest his innocence, as Mikoto turned her sharp gaze to her sheepish husband.

 

“That goes for you too, Fugaku,” the woman scolded, “Put that police report  _ away _ .”  

 

“Yes, Mikoto,” Fugaku Uchiha, Head of the Uchiha Clan and Chief of the KMPF, sighed. 

 

“Good,” Mikoto looked satisfied, “Now, Sasuke, why don’t you share how your day at the Academy went?”

 

Itachi focused his attention on his younger brother’s excited story, as he returned to picking at his steak. Once or twice though, his thoughts flickered to what his new pen pal’s reply would be.

 

x

 

Onigiri was a dish that was simple enough even for Naruto, so she decided to make a batch of them with purple cabbage and salted seaweed. There was an initial problem with her neglected rice cooker, the vegetable in question had to be tracked down at the nearest grocer, and her kitchen was a mess afterward, but it was finished. Itachi watched the young girl’s attempt at cooking, feeling somewhat flattered by her effort, and took her rummaging through her fridge, as a chance to add more salt to the rice bowl. He preferred his onigiri to be on the salty side.

 

Naruto’s sticky rice balls were a little deformed, and tufts of purple could still be seen sticking out, but she was mostly satisfied. The blonde girl carefully positioned it beside her small TV, and placed her latest reply next to the plate.

 

‘ _ I know that vegetables are healthy, but I still don’t like to eat them. Maybe I’ll try to stir-fry them next time, and see if that tastes any better. My favorite time of the day is just before nightfall, when I can look down at Konoha from the Yondaime’s Head. Almost every house is lit up, and the streetlights on the main roads are on, so it’s a cluster of shining spots from above. It can’t be seen in the summer thunderstorms though, which I really dislike. Do you like thunderstorms? _ ’

 

x

 

“Aniki, what are you doing?” Sasuke Uchiha, recently turned eight-years-old, and in possession of an insatiable curiosity where his older brother was concerned, asked. “Can you play with me?”

 

“In a minute, Sasuke,” Itachi answered, a gentle smile crossing his face as he saw the happy child. This injury had given him the unexpected benefit of spending more time with his little brother. “I need to complete some ANBU work first.”

 

Meaning that another note had to be devised for Naruto, because any actual paperwork for the most secretive military force in Konohagakure was done in Headquarters. Nevertheless, Sasuke’s eyes lit up, and he tried to peer around his brother’s arm.

 

“That’s so cool, Aniki!” Was the younger Uchiha’s enthusiastic reply. “What are you doing? Are you writing a mission report? Did you fight any super power shinobi? How did you win? Can I see?”

 

“Something like that, and no, you cannot,” Itachi replied, amused. It was heart-warming to see how much faith Sasuke put in him, but could be somewhat daunting as well.

 

“Why not?” Sasuke whined.

 

Itachi’s brief upturn of his lips was all of the warning his brother received, before the teen’s finger shot forward and poked the boy’s forehead.

 

“Hey!” Sasuke’s hands flew up to the tiny red dot forming on his head.

 

“You’re not old enough,” Itachi answered automatically, turning around and picking up his pen. He could feel Sasuke’s impatience shuffling of feet from behind him, so the older brother jotted down at a quick reply.

 

‘ _ Thank you for the onigiri; they were delicious. _

 

_ Thunderstorms can make my missions uncomfortable, but I like the rhythmic fall of raindrops against my window. The rain washes away your presence when you travel, so I guess that I appreciate it when I’m fleeing from an enemy, but not when I need to track down a target. The Hunter-Nin department- they specialize in tracking down missing-nin- almost universally hate thunderstorms.  _

 

_ Is Ichiraku your favorite restaurant? I like to visit traditional cafes, but I don’t have any specific one that I’ve enjoyed more than the others. _ ’

 

x

 

‘ _ You bought me pocky, so I was glad to return the favor. It was my first time making them though, so they wouldn’t be as good as the stuff you normally eat, I guess. _

 

_ Ichiraku serves the best ramen in Konoha, so it’s definitely my favorite, even if I didn’t visit many other restaurants. Do they have tea ceremonies in those traditional cafes you like? I don’t know much about those. You keep leaving senbon with your notes. Are they your favorite weapon?’ _

 

x

 

“Okay, so this is one mission that is finally done!” Miroku Natsori, codenamed ‘Bee’, cheered. This assassination had been relatively short, since the target resided in the Daimyo's court, but the corrupt noble’s paranoia had made it stretch out to nearly a week’s time. “Let’s go to Sayuri's Bar!”

 

“It’s Itachi’s turn to choose the post-mission meal,” Yugao Uzuki, codenamed ‘Cat’, reminded him. Along with their Team Captain, Kakashi Hatake, codenamed ‘Dog’, these four made up ANBU Squad 6.

 

“That’s true,” Kakashi hummed, noncommittally, “We’ll go where he wants to.”

 

“Aw, but Itachi never makes a choice,” Miroku groaned, referred to his mostly silent, dark-haired companion, “We’ll end up going to Sayuri’s anyway.”

 

“Nevertheless, it’s still Itachi’s turn,” the purple-haired woman refuted, “Itachi, do you have any venues to suggest?”

 

“I would like to go to Ichiraku Ramen,” the Uchiha answered quietly, ignoring his teammate’s reactions. Miroku’s mouth dropped, Yugao did a double take, and Kakashi even looked up from his hentai to lazily blink at him.

 

“What? You’re finally offering a restaurant for the first time ever?!” Miroku’s voice dripped with shock, “I definitely have to see what this Ichiraku Ramen has to offer!”

 

Ten minutes later, a pretty thirteen-year-old brunette was blushingly handing a bowl of miso ramen to the indifferent Uchiha heir, while Miroku grinned knowingly from beside him. Once again ignoring the less than professional attitudes of his team, as even Kakashi’s eye curved upwards happily, Itachi split apart his chopsticks. He took a few bites and decided that, while he had no personal love for ramen, this meal had been well-prepared.

 

Inside of his pocket lay his next note to Naruto.

 

_ ‘I’m sorry that it took so long for me to reply. My team and I had to go out on a mission, and I wasn’t able to keep in contact with anyone at the village. _

 

_ As for your question, senbon are useful tools for medical purposes, but I don’t use them often in missions. They have minimal piercing power, and I prefer shuriken and wire to hold my enemies down. Why do you like to prank people?’ _

 

x

 

Naruto Uzumaki had been far quieter than was her habit after the ANBU notes had abruptly stopped. Her morose attitude had been so uncharacteristic that Takemiya-sensei even called her up to his desk after class to ask if she was okay. The blonde had mumbled something indistinct, and then fled home.

 

When she entered her apartment, it took over an hour until she saw the brown-paper wrapped package balancing precariously on her TV. A little shocked, she picked up the package and brought it to her room, while the bearer of an ashes-and-peppermint scent sat on the building across from hers.

 

‘ _ A book on… tea ceremonies? _ ’ Naruto thought, messily tearing the package up,  _ ‘And a box of senbon! _ ’ 

 

She was less pleased to read the slanted script of the accompanying note, but had to reluctantly admit that monopolizing her ANBU Guard’s time was improbable and selfish. The blonde girl had begun to write out a reply, when she unexpectedly paused. 

 

‘ _ How honest do I want to be? _ ’ Naruto took a peek at the battered book on tea ceremonies lying on her bed. She had flicked through it, and the ANBU’s writing could be found scrawled in the margins. With the barest of hesitation, the Uzumaki girl ripped out another notebook page and began a new note.

 

‘ _ Thank you for the book and senbon. I like to play pranks because they’re challenging and fun, but also because it’s a good way to get people’s attention. For some reason, most of the adults pretend that I don’t exist, but when I prank them, they at least pay attention long enough to yell at me. Why are you sending me notes? _ ’

 

x

 

Itachi Uchiha was an individual that regularly questioned his past actions and present decisions, in an attempt to secure the most beneficial future. He had employed that same thought process to this reply, but even the genius Uchiha Heir had no idea how much he would change history with this one response.

 

‘ _ Because I want to be your friend. _ ’

 

x


	3. Chapter 3

Naruto didn’t cry after she read the latest note. It was close, and there was definitely a flush to her cheeks that hadn’t been there before, but not a single tear fell from her eyes. Instead, she carefully put the most precious note she had received so far, beyond even the first, in the shoebox dedicated to all of her ANBU’s notes, and wrote a reply. A new level of importance had entered their messages.

 

_ ‘I think you’re the first person outside of the Old Man and the folks at Ichiraku that wants to be my friend. Getting to meet you was one of the best things to happen to me. I’m glad that you left that first note.’ _

 

_ ‘So am I. You’re not the only one that has difficulty in making friends, but I think that if the adults treated your fairly, it would have been easy for you to do. You’re a kind-hearted and friendly person- when you’re not sneaking smoke bombs into the sensei’s break room anyway. What’s your favorite class at the Academy?’ _

 

‘ _ My favorite subject in class is taijutsu, but I would rather specialize in ninjutsu. I’m not very good with the basic chakra exercises, so I’ve only mastered the Henge for now. Do you have any tips for the leaf exercise? What’s your favorite subject? _ ’

 

_ ‘I’ve always enjoyed reading about history and military tactics, but that isn’t an official class at the Academy. I’m well-rounded in all of the shinobi subjects, but my chakra control gives me an edge in utilizing genjutsu. For your ninjutsu, you won’t be able to master the D-rank or C-rank jutsu with your current chakra control. Your reserves are too large for the leaf exercise, but there’s a more advanced tree-walking exercise that I’ve included a scroll for. If you can climb up and down a tree without your hands ten times, then I’ll give you an elemental jutsu scroll for your affinity.’ _

 

_ ‘What’s an elemental affinity?’ _

 

_ ‘There are five elements- katon, suiton, raiton, doton, and futon- from which most ninjutsu is derived. Most shinobi have a particular affinity for one of them, and can find out which by channeling chakra into one of these special papers, made from the bark of chakra-infused birch trees. Think of an elemental affinity as a boost to one or more element, that’ll help you master the element more quickly and use less chakra for that element’s ninjutsu. All of the other elements can be mastered at the regular rate.’ _

 

_ ‘My paper split in half! What element does that mean? Are you a katon user? You smell like ashes.’ _

 

_ ‘That was an astute judgement. I have an affinity for both Katon and Suiton techniques, but I also taught myself to master Futon jutsu. You have a Futon affinity, which is the best one for mid-to-long range offensive techniques, and is commonly channelled into weapons to sharpen their cutting power. There’s a scroll for Wind Release: Gale Palm, a C-rank supplementary technique, that will increase the speed of your thrown weapons or Katon jutsu.’ _

 

x

 

Itachi had technically been discharged from guard duty, as his femur had healed and his skills were more useful in advanced missions, but he still hid in an Academy training field. He had some time available to himself, and wanted to see how far Naruto would get with the C-rank jutsu.

 

“If you wanted to bring me along to stalk your prepubescent crush, then you could have at least offered to buy lunch first,” Shisui grumbled, perching on a tree branch across from him. 

 

“Don’t be crass,” Itachi chided softly, eyes bleeding into the deep crimson of the Sharingan. His dojutsu allowed him to visibly observe the silver-tinted wind chakra the blonde girl was drawing to her palms. Her chakra control had improved notably through the tree-walking attempt- a skill mastered as much through bullheaded determination as anything else- but her hand signs were slow.

 

Itachi made a mental note to recommend practicing them in his next note.

 

“I was so excited when I learned that you were trading secret notes with a girl,” his older cousin lamented, ignoring him, “A seven-year-old though, is cradle robbing in the worst way, Ita-chan.”

 

Naruto’s affinity with the wind element was strong, as the silvery colour of her gathered chakra grew, and slowly began to form the shape of a wide-length crescent. Itachi was impressed; he hadn’t thought the blonde would gain this level of control until she had mastered water-walking too. 

 

“Not that she isn’t pretty, of course,” Shisui added, smirking at the younger boy, “Definitely going to be a looker when she grows up. I applaud you for singling her out early on, before anyone- damn! Did Naruto Uzumaki just manage a Gale Palm on the first try?!”

 

The blunt wave of wind being thrown out of her hands barely pushed back the blades of grass, before dissipating into the air, but was unmistakably in the form of a Gale Palm. It didn’t elicit any sort of appreciation from the scowling blonde girl, despite the impressed gazes of two Uchiha prodigies watching her practice from afar. Her hands slowly formed the requisite signs again, before Naruto threw out a marginally stronger buffer of wind ninjutsu.

 

Itachi was gratified when Naruto’s initial success was replicated again and again, until even the Uzumaki’s vast reserves began to feel the pinch of chakra loss. Her Gale Palm jutsu became quicker to form, and slower to disperse, as the blonde narrowed her range to less than ten meters in front of her. Shisui’s Mangekyo Sharingan had activated, and the two Jounin level shinobi quietly observed the slender slip of a girl, before the silence was expectedly broken.

 

“Man, if I had her chakra reserves…” Shisui mused, wistfully, “She’s used that jutsu eight times already, and she still has enough chakra to form another one.”

 

“Naruto’s starting to slow down,” Itachi noted, as the next attack was even weaker than her original one, “She’ll have to stop soon.”

 

“Her seal mixes the bijuu chakra with her own, doesn’t it?” the older Uchiha asked, looking at him out of the corner of his eye, “You can see the wisps of red coming out of her hands.” 

 

“It’s not enough for nine C-ranked Gale Palms,” Itachi answered, “Even with a Futon chakra affinity.”

 

Shisui’s eyebrows rose. “Hmm,” he returned his gaze to the blonde girl, “She’s going to be a ninjutsu monster one day. If I were you, I wouldn’t let the Elders see her practice.”

 

“You think they’re going to forbid the heir’s association with the jinchuuriki?”

 

“Not at all. I think they’re going to force Sasuke to get over his fear of cooties a lot earlier than he would otherwise.”

 

x

 

_ ‘If the Hunter-Nin are a specialized team in the Intelligence Department, then what department are the ANBU part of?’ _

 

_ ‘The ANBU are an independent elite shinobi force that answers directly to the Hokage. It consists of nearly 300 members, mostly Chuunin level in combat, that are entirely loyal to the Hokage. The remainder of the shinobi force is either independent contractors, meaning that they have first pick of missions in the village pool, or associated with a department that pays them a base salary. Most of the latter type of shinobi supplement their income by running missions on top of their part-time department work.’ _

 

_ ‘So you’re an elite ninja working directly for the Old Man? Wow! That’s really cool; I think I want to be in ANBU one day. So, if you’re part of an independent task force, then would you know the different types of departments in Konoha?’  _

 

_ ‘Well, I’m not that good. There are a lot of more experience shinobi and kunoichi, who are far better than I am. You may be one of them, even, if you work hard and keep practicing your chakra control exercises. The next one for you to try is the water-walking technique, which I included below. _

 

_ The Intelligence Department is probably the most important one, as it consists of the Hunter Nin, Counter-Intelligence, Cryptographers, Diplomatic Corps, and Torture & Interrogation teams. The other two main departments are the Medical Corps, who focus on iryo-ninjutsu, and the Barrier Corps, which focus on fuuinjutsu. You’ll find more information on them, and the other groups in Konoha, in the organization and logistics packet below. They’re meant for Chuunin, but Hokage-sama didn’t mind giving one to you.’ _

 

_ ‘You sound like the Old Man when you keep trying to get me to study. Though the promise of a new jutsu does a much better motivational job than the Old Man swearing that geography will come in useful sometime in my shinobi career. You can rest easy knowing that I have been diligently practicing my chakra control for the Great Fireball jutsu. In fact, I think I can still feel pond scum clinging to my clothes. Ew. By the way, do you know why the Nidaime attacked Kumo from the Land of Haze during the Second Shinobi War?’ _

 

_ ‘Here’s a list of books that can answer your question, and a set of directions to the library. Now do your own homework.’ _

 

_ ‘What?! How did you know it was my homework? There are no ashes-and-peppermint scents in my apartment, so you couldn’t be guarding me now.’ _

 

_ ‘I see all. I know all.’ _

 

x

 

There was the barest hint of a smile on the Uchiha heir’s face as he read Naruto’s latest accusation about his non-existent Hyuuga heritage. The claim of having all-knowing eyes had caused the blonde girl to jump immediately to that conclusion, though he only knew because Sasuke had the same assignment that week. Itachi hadn’t made it any easier by ‘protesting’ otherwise.

 

‘ _ Maybe I should claim to be an Uchiha in the next note? _ ’ Itachi mused, a near silent chuckle escaping his lips, ‘ _ If that doesn’t convince her that I’m a Hyuuga, then I don’t know what will.’ _ ’

 

The light pad of footsteps outside of his door had the dark-haired teen look back, but, rather than the cheerful little brother he had expected, his mother walked in. Slowly, almost casually, Itachi tried to put his note away, but Mikoto Uchiha’s keen ash gaze lingered on the flash of white paper.

 

“Itachi, what do you have there?” Mikoto asked, an inquiring tilt of her head suggesting that a response was to be imminent. 

 

“Paperwork,” her son replied shortly. Unfortunately, for all that Itachi Uchiha was a talented liar, he was not so good as to fool the Jounin-level mother that had raised him from the cradle.

 

“At home?” The Uchiha woman’s eyes continued tracking the paper in his hand, “That looks rather short. Is it a note?”

 

“Shisui asked me to meet him for a training session this weekend,” Itachi answered.

 

“Why lie about something your older cousin asked you to do? And since when does Shisui leave notes?” Mikoto’s voice was filled with doubt. Another idea occurred to her, and a certain _glint_ entered those ash-toned eyes. “Is that message from a girl _?_ ”

 

Itachi mouth opened to form a refusal, but his mother must have seen something on his face that he wasn’t aware of displaying, because she happily squealed. “My little boy is exchanging love letters? That’s so romantic, Itachi-chan! Who is she?”

 

The dark-haired teen’s eyes flickered to the window, and his mother’s immediately followed them. A heartbeat later, and Mikoto lunged forward, while Itachi threw his body to the side, propelled himself off of his bed, and jumped through his open window. Then he did the only sensible thing one could do in a situation like this: he fled to Shisui’s home.

 

There were three days that he spent in his friend’s guest room, all the while his mother was deluged with interest for the girl that caught her older son’s eye.

 

“I know Itachi’s shy, but you’d think that he would at least feel comfortable telling his Kaa-san,” Mikoto said, on the first day, “He must not have confessed to her yet, but I wonder what it is about her that caught his attention. She’s probably a kunoichi, and a very smart one too. Maybe they bonded over a shared love of history?”

 

“What if she’s rejected him?” The second day brought a sense of panic. “My poor baby doesn’t want to tell us because he’s heartbroken over his rejection. Or is she someone that he’s ashamed of introducing to the clan, like a homeless person or a Hyuuga? Itachi will tell us when he comes home, won’t he? It won’t take much longer now. Shisui is a terrible cook.”

 

“Why didn’t Itachi come home yet?” Mikoto demanded, on the third day, “He’s risking food poisoning the longer he stays there, and I’m worried about him! Itachi should know that we’ll accept whomever he likes, as long as the girl makes him happy. Fugaku, go and bring our son home.”

 

“Maybe he’ll be more likely to come home if you promise not to interrogate him about the girl he’s been exchanging notes with,” Fugaku suggested, mildly. He was far less worried than his wife, who seemed to have forgotten that Itachi was a self-sufficient Jounin that knew how to cook.

 

“Fine,” Mikoto huffed, clearly miserable over not having one of her sons home. Fugaku mentally calculated the duration of the breakdown she would have when Itachi, much less Sasuke, finally got married and left their home for good, and barely withheld a sigh of his own.

 

“I’ll send a note then,” the beautiful woman said, scribbling down the message on a piece of scrap paper, and walking over to the window, “Akane-chan? Would you mind running an errand for me?”

 

The pretty teenaged Uchiha, who, like many of the girls in their Clan, had an unreciprocated crush on her eldest son, jogged up to the window. “Not at all, Mikoto-san. Where should I take this?”

 

“If you could take it to my son,” Mikoto politely ignored Akane’s bright smile, “And tell him that I’ll stop interrogating him about his girlfriend if he came home, then I’ll appreciate it. He’s at Shisui’s house now.” 

 

Akane’s smile fell for a moment, before an expression of determination covered his girlish features. “Of course, Mikoto-san. I’ll be happy to deliver it.”

 

The teenager all-but-snatched the paper out of her hand, and turned to march towards the eastern section of the Compound. Mikoto was moving away from the window before Akane even turned around, in order to keep anyone from seeing the smug grin on her face. After all, just because _ she  _ agreed to stop interrogating Itachi, doesn’t mean that she couldn’t recruit amongst his fans.

 

It had been many years since Mikoto Uchiha was the best friend of a consummate prankster, but she had never forgotten Kushina’s lessons.

 

x

 

_ ‘All of the girls in my class have gone crazy. I am now officially disavowing my gender.’ _

 

_ ‘Why? Are the kunoichi-only lessons that bad?’ _

 

_ ‘Yes. Yes, they are. But the reason I’m embarrassed is because all of the female students in my class have a crush on this boy named Sasuke Uchiha.’ _

 

_ ‘I see. And you don’t have a crush on him?’ _

 

_ ‘Of course not! He’s a pampered clan brat that can’t stop talking about how great his older brother is. I don’t see what’s so special about Itachi Uchiha either. Can you take him in a fight?’ _

 

_ ‘Itachi and I have never fought, so I can’t answer that. Have you ever met Itachi Uchiha? If you have, then what do you think of him?’ _

 

_ ‘Itachi had to pick Sasuke up from school once, but we never talked. He looked like the usual stuck-up pretty boy to me. He might also be mute.’ _

 

_ ‘Perhaps if you got to know Itachi better, than you’d like him more?’ _

 

_ ‘I doubt it. Why are you defending him anyway? I thought the Hyuuga and Uchiha Clans were rivals.’ _

 

_ ‘I told you before, I’m not a member of the Hyuuga Clan.’  _

 

_ ‘Sure, you’re not. Besides Itachi’s Sasuke’s biggest role model, and Sasuke is a spoiled brat, so that doesn’t reflect very well on his older brother. You know, Miko tried to give him a box of chocolates today, but he just stuck his nose up and said he didn’t like sweets! Not only was it obviously a lie- because all kids love candy- but he didn’t even refuse it nicely! I don’t like Miko, but even I had to feel bad when she started sniffling.’ _

 

_ ‘Maybe we should stop talking about the Uchiha Clan? Tell me how your water-walking practice went.’ _

 

x

 

“Aniki, can we train together now?” Sasuke asked, once he had returned his dishes to the sink.

 

“I would like you to answer a question for me first, Sasuke,” his older brother affixed disapproving eyes on him, “Did you rudely refuse a gift from a classmate named Miko today?”

 

The flash of surprised guilt crossing the younger boy’s face affirmed his answer. “Aniki, how did you know that?!”

 

“That’s not the main focus here, Sasuke,” Itachi scolded, “The main question is why you didn’t act with the manners befitting our family.”

 

“As for your question,” the teen added, as an afterthought, “I see all. I know all.”

 

x


	4. Chapter 4

As tensions within the village grew, and the Uchiha Clan became ever more isolated from the rest of Konoha, Itachi found himself relying more and more on the notes from Naruto to get through the day. The dark-haired boy had been fulfilling his various duties- to his Kage, to his clan, to his family, and to his brother- to the point that Itachi was on the edge of shattering. There were only so many hours in a day, and the teen was forced to exchange time spent with his younger brother for spying on his own clan, or skipping family dinners to keep up with the requisite mission intake for the Uchiha. Even training with Shisui was emotionally exhausting, because while his older cousin sympathized with Itachi’s situation, he was firmly disapproving of spying on the clan.

 

No matter what decision Itachi made, he felt like he was betraying  _ somebody _ . If he sided with the village, then he might be forced to fight his own kinsman, but, to do otherwise, was to sanction a civil war. The teen knew that the Uchiha Clan had legitimate complaints, because they  _ had _ been slowly pushed out of village affairs for decades, but a coup d’etat would lead to the outbreak of the fourth shinobi war! Not to mention that they were likely to be defeated during their revolt, and cause several council members, such as Danzo, to advocate for the worst possible punishment.

 

All of these tensions were weighing down on Itachi, and the thirteen-year-old’s response was to become ever more withdrawn in public. He had never been particularly social before, but tolerating Miroku’s lewd comments or Yugao’s well-intentioned mothering, through the facade of the aloof Uchiha heir was maddening. 

 

In these difficult times, Naruto’s innocent friendship and guileless affections were nearly addictive. She didn’t know that he was the Uchiha Heir or the ANBU prodigy, and thus, held no previous conceptions of him. The girl’s expectations were modest; a note every few days would make her happy, and a small gift often lit her up for weeks. And there was something immensely satisfying about gifting Naruto a shinobi technique, and seeing her master it. Itachi had spent enough time as her guard to know that Naruto Uzumaki was an indifferent student at the Academy, so it made him a little smug to know that she would study diligently at _ his _ request. 

 

Her most recent note had detailed her experiences with the water-walking technique, and her frustrations about keeping the skill to herself.

 

‘ _ I’ve finally learned how to stand still on top of the water, but every time I try to move, I lose my concentration and fall. My clothes always end up soaked through after practice, and I have to walk home, shivering in the cold air, but at least I’m making some progress. I think I almost felt how much chakra I was putting into my Henge yesterday, and I can’t believe that I’ve been wasting so much! Between water-walking and tree-walking, my chakra control has improved by leaps and bounds, though I  _ still  _ can’t get that stupid leaf to stick to my head.  _

 

_ That teme Uchiha thinks he’s so great, because he can balance  _ four _ leaves now, but I bet that I’m the only kid in the Academy that can walk on walls. I’d love to show him that, and wipe that smirk off of his annoying, teme face, but that’s impossible for now. I’m not going to get you in trouble for teaching me a Chuunin skill, and it’s kind of funny that all of the other kids are mocking me for my leaf, when I know that I have a way more awesome technique to practice in secret. Let the teme call me inferior after seeing them! Anyway, you mentioned before that the Intelligence Division covers foreign shinobi, but why do they publish their information in the Bingo Books? And how do they know if…’  _

 

Itachi personally considered it a shame that Sasuke had no intention to befriend the loudmouthed, troublemaking dobe of his class, despite his older brother  _ and mother’s  _ encouragement. And Naruto Uzumaki’s opinion on the spoiled clan child had been fairly well-described by the scornful jinchuuriki.

 

He would have liked to send his reply now, but Itachi had another one of those dreaded meetings with the Sandaime about the Uchiha clan’s coup. It was unlikely that he would be able to swing by the girl’s apartment, and then race halfway across the village to the Hokage’s Tower without being late. The blonde-haired girl preferred to use this time to train though, and the Uchiha heir felt that he could make a brief visit to her favorite training grounds.

 

As expected, Naruto was balanced precariously over the center of the lake bordering Training Ground 2, eyes narrowed into a glare towards the water. What Itachi hadn’t expected to see, was the blonde girl channeling violet-tinted chakra to both her hands and knees, as she tried to crawl along the water.

 

“I’m not going to let you win,” Naruto swore softly, almost making Itachi jump. Had she noticed- oh, she was talking to the lake. “This time I  _ will  _ make it across the water.” 

 

With painstakingly slowness, the girl lifted one chakra-glowing palm from the water, leaned forward and placed it against the clear, fluctuating water. The fluid wavered, but the surface refused to break. A brilliant grin forced the whiskers on her cheeks to bunch together. 

 

“Ha! You’ve fallen under the might of Naruto Uzumaki, dattebayo! You will- eek!” 

 

The chakra pooling under her left knee chose then to snap, causing one limb to sink into the water, unbalancing the others, and ultimately, causing the blonde’s waifish body to tumble into the lake. Bubbles formed above her position, as she was fully immersed, before Naruto’s head broke the surface of the water. Sputtering and rapidly blinking the water out of her eyes, Naruto Uzumaki let loose a litany of curse words that Itachi had only ever heard from Shisui before. 

 

_ ‘How very ladylike of her,’ _ the dark-haired boy thought, hiding a grin. When Naruto was done painting the air blue, she swam back to land, and wrung the water from the bottom of her shirt. Then the Uzumaki bared her slightly-longer than average fangs at the lake, rather like an Inuzuka, before returning to her stumble-crawl method. 

 

“This isn’t over, lake,” the blonde growled, “I promise that I will one day walk over you! And Naruto Uzumaki never breaks a promise!”

 

_ ‘I wonder if I should tell her about how inefficient that is?’ _ Itachi wondered, ‘ _ Keeping her mind on four points of contact instead of two, will only make it harder for her to learn water-walking, and waste a lot more chakra too. But it’ll improve her concentration and chakra control more than the regular method, and it’s not like she doesn't have energy to spare. _ ’

 

The teen was tempted to stay a little longer- incremental progress meant more amusing falls, after all- but he had a responsibility to his Kage first. So Itachi sent one last half-smile to the oblivious Uzumaki, before bringing his hands together in a Shunshin, and disappearing from sight.

 

When he arrived at the Hokage’s office, Itachi saw that the Sandaime was ending a meeting with his advisors. The teen stood by the wall, face blank and eyes cold, as the elderly shinobi and kunoichi made their farewells. Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane both looked at him curiously, but didn’t initiate a conversation as they stepped out. The third advisor though, a man with over half of his body wrapped tightly in bandages, paused before him, and offered a nod.

 

“Danzo-san,” Itachi murmured, angling his head forward minutely. He was wary of the older man’s interest in his cousin’s eyes, and despised his aggressive foreign policies, but the Uchiha heir knew the importance of a public appearance. And, if nothing else, Danzo Shimura had earned those bandages in his zealous defense of the village.

 

“Itachi,” Danzo’s voice was bereft of any warmth, but there was a respect in his sole, visible eye for the Uchiha’s actions. “Have you come here to report?”

 

“It is to be a private report to myself, Danzo,” Hiruzen said, gesturing for Itachi to come forward. The teen neatly transitioned to a bended knee, watching for Shimura’s expression out of the corner of his eye. There was a brief twist of displeasure on the War Hawk’s face, and then a resigned nod.

 

“I’ll discuss the pertinent information with the advisory council later,” the Sandaime added, as Danzo shuffled out. Once the room was clear of everyone but the Hokage, the ANBU Guards, and Itachi, the old man’s keen eyes fastened on the kneeling shinobi.

 

“Have there been any changes amongst the leadership, Itachi?”

 

“No, sir. The Uchiha Elders are determined to instigate a rebellion, and the older generation are still fine-tuning their plans for attack.”

 

“Have you been given any specifics yet?”

 

“My heir status only affords me vague descriptions of the plans. They do not trust me enough to bring me further into the council’s confidence. As a whole, the younger generation are not being brought into any plans for the coup.” 

 

“A plausible defense for the future of the clan, then. Are there any members of your generation that will rebel against the elder’s dictates during the coup?”

 

“I… I do not think so, Hokage-sama. Shisui is the only one both observant enough to know of the coup, and powerful enough to risk the clan’s censure. Many of the other ninja are dissatisfied with the village’s suspicion, and may support the clan’s rebellion.”

 

“And Fugaku?”

 

“My father was not one of the early supporters of the idea, but he believes that a rebellion is inevitable. He’s currently working on plans to minimize the damage to the clan, when they attack.”

 

It continued on for over an hour, as Itachi listlessly replied to a series of questions that he had answered over and over again. There had been no serious progress with his clan, since the  _ last  _ time Itachi had to shamefully acknowledge his father as a traitor to the village. And his frustration and embarrassment was merely exacerbated by his inability to save his own family from themselves.

 

“Continue to monitor the situation, and inform me of any developments in the future,” Hiruzen Sarutobi finished, signaling the end of the teen’s report, “And I thank you for the work you've done.”

 

The Uchiha’s mouth tasted like it was full of ash, as he left the room. The Hokage’s gratitude was misplaced; Itachi hadn’t been able to do a single damn thing for either Konoha or the Uchiha.

 

The dark-haired boy regained a shred of composure as he placed his note on Naruto’s small T.V. A box of chocolate pocky laid on the black metal, presumably for him, and that drew a smile, as Itachi headed back home. The air of lazy contentment surrounding the teen prodigy, as he snacked on the treats, was unusual enough that it drew the attention of several of his clansman.

 

“By the blessings of the Kami, Mikoto was telling the truth,” one of the older matrons exclaimed, astonished, “Little Itachi-chan really is hiding a girl from the clan.”

 

“Shisui claims that the girl is a ninjutsu prodigy,” her companion said, conspiratorially, “As Itachi’s best friend, he would know, of course. Says that the girl’s a real beauty.”

 

“Must have just spent some with her then,” another matron contributed, laughing, “Never thought I would see Fugaku’s boy so relaxed before!”

 

Not that Itachi Uchiha heard any of those comments, as the teen was forced to abruptly change direction once he saw one of his distant cousins ahead. He had been peripherally aware of a fair few females of the clan developing crushes on him, but they had never been this persistent. For some reason, many of them were convinced that he was interested in finding a girlfriend now.

 

_ ‘I don’t know how, but this is Shisui’s fault, somehow,’ _ the Uchiha griped inwardly, swearing that he would have his revenge.

 

x

 

Shino Aburame was disposed by nature to be an observant child. That he was also a socially-awkward and introverted child deepened his inclination to study his classmates from afar. He had many new peers to observe today, as the recent advancement tests had led to an Academy-wide shuffle of students. His class had received an influx of new students from one level above and below his own.

 

In this event, lied an opportunity for the guarded Aburame heir. He had been encouraged by his father, the Aburame Clan Head, to seek companionship amongst his peers, which was an endeavor that often left Shino unhappy. Many of these students would become his comrades in the future, but, as of the moment, they reacted with a child’s instinctive disgust at his allies. This phenomenon was mostly restricted to the civilian students, but even clan children, like the Yamanaka heiress, had vocally denied the Aburame’s company.

 

Shino suspected that his distant demeanor and bulky overcoat contributed to this disquiet, but he could not compromise on these factors. Eye contact was also very important for the development of emotional bonds, as it inspired familiarity and trust, but Shino was rather attached to his sunglasses. He remained a shy child, and the thin plates of tinted glass served as a barrier between him and his fellow children’s contempt.

 

However, the Aburame still thought that he would like to make a friend, and was willing to make another effort to do so. Once again, his mind considered the potential friends available to him, and made the logical arguments as to why a friendship didn’t form.

 

The Yamanaka heiress, and indeed, almost all of the females in Shino’s class, were afraid of his kikachu. As they were integral to his lifestyle, and the Aburame was unable to part from them, it would be difficult to secure a healthy friendship with any of them. Moreover, his experiences with his female counterparts, suggested that they would share few common interests, and, on a personal note, would converse in a volume that would irritate his sensitive hearing.

 

The former reason applied to many of the male civilian students in the class, as well, and the latter certainly applied to the boisterous Inuzuka. Shikamaru Nara and Choji Akimichi had neither issue, but Shino was too diligent to enjoy their more slothful activities. The Hyuuga Heiress was kind, but she was also even more painfully shy than Shino himself was. Sasuke Uchiha, in turn, had been well-mannered but aloof, skilled but arrogant, and too attached to the limelight for Shino’s comfort. Besides, Shibi Aburame had requested that he avoid the other boy’s company for some reason.

 

One of the few female individuals that did not seem to like the Uchiha boy- and, for that matter, seemed to actively dislike him- was a civilian, orphan girl. Naruto Uzumaki was the loudmouthed, troublemaking dobe of the class, but, from Shino’s observations, she should have lost that title months ago. The blonde girl may have been demoted from the class above them, but that was due to her decision not to take the advancement exam, not because she failed. Her class standing was still low, but the dubious honor of the deadlast title belonged to the genius slacker Shikamaru. The Uzumaki wasn’t nearly as loud or disobedient as the older students’ claimed either. Shino had seen one ingenious prank attributed to her so far, but the girl was a lone wolf that hurriedly left the Academy as soon as the bell rang.

 

Shino wondered where she was going, and why she was in such a hurry to go there. The Aburame heir wondered a lot of things about the Uzumaki actually. Like why his father, the head of a noble clan, recognized her name immediately, the one time that Shino mentioned it. Or why a so-called trivial orphan bore the surname of a famous, foreign clan from the Aburame’s history texts. And Shino would really like to know why his kikachu buzzed apprehensively around a delicate blonde waif of a girl.

 

He had met Jounin that elicited a lesser show of concern from his allies than Naruto Uzumaki, and that made her utterly fascinating to the Aburame.

 

‘ _ She’s not the best student, but she’s not a fangirl either, _ ’ Shino mused, ‘ _ Her chakra pools are large, and she’s determined to become a powerful ninja, so it is likely that she will graduate. Naruto has a loud, boisterous personality, but it’s not nearly as bad as it could be, and she spends half her time scribbling in that notebook of hers, anyway. _ ’

 

That was another matter that piqued Shino’s curiosity.  _ What _ was Naruto writing in her notebook?

 

For these reasons, and because Shino cringed at befriending the Inuzuka, his next-best option, led to the Aburame’s action the next day. And, like Itachi Uchiha, Shino Aburame had no idea of the repercussions his minor variance would have on the world.

 

Though, many years down the road, as a beautiful blonde woman handed him the bundled form of his newborn godson, Shino Aburame would claim that he made the objectively correct choice.

 

x

 

Naruto Uzumaki had been too immersed in her latest note from her pen pal to notice when the silent Shino took a seat beside her in class. 

 

‘ _ The amount of chakra you have makes training your control a lifetime priority, but I don’t think you’ll ever reach the point where you can keep one leaf stuck to your body. Conversely, you will have an easier time learning higher level jutsu then your peers, and have a natural talent for elemental ninjutsu. I’ve seen you practice- I apologize for the secrecy, but ANBU agents are not allowed to reveal their identities- and your Gale Palm is field-ready now.  It can be used effectively against multiple opponents in battle, but the jutsu will be far more devastating when you learn how to use it in conjunction with the Great Fireball jutsu. On a side note, your vocal display of displeasure during the water-walking exercise is another effective tool against enemy shinobi. _

 

_ I would still caution you to keep those skills to yourself for now. Deception is the cornerstone of shinobi life, and a hidden ace or two may draw the line between survival and death one day. Also, while the Hokage has not explicitly forbidden your training, it would not be to our advantage to flaunt your knowledge. And I’m sure that the Uchiha boy did not mean to belittle your shinobi skills.  _

 

_ The Bingo Book only publishes the basic information available to almost every shinobi village, and does so for multiple reasons. One benefit is that Konoha receives more prestige if another village labels a Leaf nin with a high ranking, and vice versa. Another benefit mitigates diplomatic crises by clearly labeling missing-nin, and yet another is to provide incentives for the successful capture/death of Konoha’s enemies. They’re also a good way to spread intelligence of foreign shinobi amongst the ranks, which lowers the risk of coming across specialized opponents on the field…’  _

 

The blonde girl couldn’t help but compare this half-page of detailed information, genuine encouragement, and even restrained teasing, to the one-lined compliment of her first note. The Uzumaki still treasured the first kind words to ever be directed at her messy, tangled, neon-yellow hair, but was even more glad to have reached this level of closeness now. Though the Yosei comparison was never too far from her mind, as her initial reaction to this note had proved.

 

Naruto’s immediate response to reading about her training session had been to blush a deep red, and cringe at the memory of her mid-practice appearance. The blonde-haired girl had looked as far from a beautiful woodland sprite as it was possible to be, and it kind of dismayed her that the ANBU would see that. Then her common sense kicked in, and reminded her that kind, strong, older boy that liked her hair or not, Naruto Uzumaki was _ not _ a fangirl. And as her former ANBU Guard, he had probably seen many other embarrassing, unsightly moments that didn’t leave her as pretty, perfumed, and perfect as the popular girls in her class were.

 

Her momentary identity crisis resolved, Naruto returned to analyzing the note for another reason. She was on a self-appointed mission to discover the identity of her mysterious pen pal. In an unrelated matter, the Hyuuga Clan had been suffering from a rash of burglaries lately, as a petty thief stole mundane documents from under the all-seeing Byakugan.

 

Thus, Naruto was indifferent to her new seat mate as she compared the note’s penmanship to that of the papers she had borrowed from the Hyuuga.

 

‘ _ None of these match at all, _ ’ the blonde bemoaned, ‘ _ The closest matches are Neji Hyuuga, who's only a year older than me, and Kaoru Hyuuga, who’s an old lady! I’m starting to think that ANBU-san had never even been a Hyuuga in the first place. _ ’

 

Which, technically, was what ANBU-san had wrote, but if he  _ had _ been a Hyuuga, then wouldn’t he have claimed that he wasn’t?

 

The disappointment of having gone through all of this effort for nothing kept Naruto in a quiet sulk for the remainder of the lesson. When her new sensei, a scarred brunette named Iruka, dismissed them for lunch, the blonde stood up, planning to eat alone on the roof, as she usually did. Then the glasses-wearing boy sitting next to her called her name.

 

Three times actually. Naruto was rather lost in her own thoughts.

 

“Yeah?” She wasn’t trying to be rude, but Naruto didn’t feel like dealing with her classmate’s mocking right now. If the boy used that annoying ‘dobe’ title, she silently swore, then she would shave him bald and glue an orange geisha wig to his head.

 

“I was wondering if you would like to have lunch with me, Uzumaki-san,” the boy answered politely.

 

“Oh,” Naruto stared at him. That had been unexpected. “No, thanks.”

 

She grabbed her own battered bento box and tried to leave the top aisle seat.

 

The boy’s voice could be heard again. “May I know why you refused my request, Uzumaki-san?”

 

_ ‘Because I have to juggle my training and an investigation, and I don’t have time for strange boys that’ll get in the way of that,’  _ Naruto thought. Aloud, she answered. “I don’t know you.”

 

“I believe that is a conception that could be corrected by sharing a meal together, Uzumaki-san,” the boy adjusted his shaded glasses, and Naruto finally recognized him as the Aburame boy, “Are you afraid of my allies? I ask this because many of our classmates are discomforted by attacks that utilize insects as the main weapon.”

 

“Huh?” When he saw her confusion, the boy extended one pale hand upon which rested a tiny, black beetle. Naruto stared down at it in interest. 

 

“You use jutsus with bugs? What do they do?”

 

“My kikachu are capable of absorbing my opponent’s chakra and transferring that energy to me.”

 

Naruto blinked. “Neat. Still don’t want to eat lunch with you, but you have a cool skill, Aburame.”

 

There was a moment that the Aburame merely stood there, adjusting his shades again, before he stepped aside. The blonde girl stepped around him, ignorant of the attention they had gained from some of the other members of the class, and hurriedly made her way to the roof. The sooner she finished her lunch, the sooner she could get to making other plans to find out the ANBU’s identity.

 

Although her brief conversation with the Aburame hadn’t made much of an impact on the blonde, Shino had been intrigued enough to make another overture. Then another. And another. And another.

 

Shino would ask her to eat lunch with him, Naruto would refuse, and, after the small exchange, the Uzumaki girl would flee the room. This managed to catch the attention of the class, though not everyone saw the interaction in the same light. 

 

Ino Yamanaka, and most of the other students, believed that the Aburame heir had a crush on the Uzumaki girl, who was understandably creeped out by his bugs to accept his advances. Iruka Umino saw that it was a simple attempt at friendship, and wondered why Shino was so insistent in befriending the jinchuuriki girl. Choji Akimichi, a secret romantic, thought it was heartwarming while Kiba Inuzuka shook his head at the blonde’s apparent coldness. Shikamaru Nara thought the entire matter was troublesome, and Hinata Hyuuga believed that Shino was a figure worthy of her admiration for having the courage to continually approach the other figure of her admiration.

 

Even Sasuke noticed it, and made a dinnertime remark about how a boy with grades almost as good as his kept trying to gain the attention of the class’s deadlast. After that, another personal comment made its way into Naruto’s notes.

 

‘ _ The Aburame, along with the Hyuuga and Yamanaka clans, are the three top Konoha clans that focus on instilling chakra control exercises to their children. The clan heir will be taught tree-walking, at least, before becoming a genin, to correctly measure the proper quantity of chakra to feed his allies. It would not hurt you to befriend the young boy that keeps offering to share a meal with you. _ ’

 

Shino’s high-collar jacket and dark sunglasses hid the look of surprise on his face, when Naruto agreed to eat lunch with him the next day. The blonde girl remained oblivious to her classmates’ staring, as she grabbed the Aburame’s sleeve, and led him up several flights of stairs.

 

“Are we allowed to do this?” Shino asked, as Naruto lifted a window on the top floor, tucked her bento under her arm, and grabbed the rope hanging down from the roof. 

 

“Nope!” was the cheerful reply, and Shino was just curious enough to follow. They sat down under the shade of the Academy’s water tower, and the Aburame could look down at the entire complex. There was a pleasant breeze, slightly-warmed wooden tiles underfoot, and a fascinating blonde unwrapping her lunch across from him. Shino judged that this scenario was worth a possible detention.

 

“So, has your clan started you on the tree-walking technique, than?”

 

_ ‘She knows about an advanced chakra control technique, _ ’ Shino observed,  _ ‘Uzumaki Naruto is a very curious girl. _ ’

 

x

 

Shisui Uchiha had never liked the police draft Uncle Fugaku would pull every time the KMPF found itself with more cases than available officers. Mostly because it was a pain to break into police headquarters every time, in order to burn his own name slip from the random draft pick. However, this time fate- in the form of an irate Itachi- had worked against him, and his name had been drawn.

 

Specifically, every single slip in the lottery had ‘Shisui Uchiha’ written on it, which was the kind of blatant meddling that the higher-ups would ignore because this was a ninja clan and only one officer was needed anyway. 

 

Shisui had yelled at his younger cousin, Itachi had snapped back, and, after a confusing exchange of accusations, they agreed that this was Mikoto Uchiha’s fault. But the damage was done, and Shisui had been slotted for the Hyuuga burglary case. As a means of apology, Itachi had offered to help him with it, and the older Uchiha was vengeful enough to accept.

 

Now, the two teens were facing Hiashi Hyuuga, who seemed remarkably unconcerned about the thief that was making a mockery of the clan’s dojutsu whilst stealing his family’s possessions.

 

“And the thief mainly stole… grocery lists?” Shisui repeated, in disbelief. He checked over his notes again, and saw the absurdity of the stolen documents. To-do lists, old receipts, homework papers, and teen poetry could hardly bring down the powerful Hyuuga Clan.

 

“I believe I’ve already said that,” Hiashi responded, taking a graceful sip of his tea, “Many of them have been returned, but we suspect that the thief plans to steal from us again, tonight.”

 

“I see,” the messy-haired teen said slowly, “Hiashi-sama, do you happen to know who the thief is?”

 

The Head of the Hyuuga shrugged. It was quite possibly the only gesture of confusion that Shisui had ever seen that managed to be graceful and confident. “My suspicions are unfounded,” he demurred.

 

“I’m sure that any information you offer could be of help to us,” Shisui said, barely stopping himself from gritting his teeth.

 

“My own experience does not lend itself to an investigative mindset.” Despite Hiashi’s level tone, Shisui had the feeling that the older man was laughing at him. Then the man’s unnerving pale eyes swivelled towards Itachi, and a smirk crossed his face. “I will leave you to your work in peace then.”

 

‘ _ Asshole wants us to stay up all night watching his house, _ ’ the older Uchiha thought, grumpily, as Hiashi stood up, and gave them graceful nods of farewell.

 

“I did not think that Hiashi-sama would be so petty,” Itachi noted, silently mimicking his older cousin’s actions, as Shisui stood up, stalked outside, and jumped onto the roof. The two sat near one another, on the Senju-grown trees next to the house, prepared for a long night of nothing.

 

A short individual, dressed entirely in black, with a few strands of blonde hair escaping from her hat, sneaking across the Hyuuga grounds was not what they had expected.

 

“Itachi? Why is your girlfriend stealing grocery lists from the Hyuuga?” Shisui asked, once he had broken through his shock.

 

“She’s not my girlfriend,” Itachi corrected, having instinctively pressed into the dark pools of shadows formed by the trees. “And I don’t know what she’s doing here.”

 

“I don’t think Uncle Fugaku could bear to meet his future daughter-in-law in a prison cell,” Shisui continued, blithely. “Though I can see why it would be the height of teenage rebellion for a police officer’s son to date a noted lawbreaker.” 

 

“She’s not my girlfriend,” Itachi sighed, “And we can’t arrest minors.”

 

“You can’t just give her special treatment because you like her,” Shisui hissed, ignoring him, “We have time-honoured traditions for this, and you haven’t even extorted the bribe money yet!” 

 

When there wasn’t another refusal of the relationship that Shisui fully expected to occur one day, the teen turned to where his cousin had been hiding. Itachi wasn’t there anymore, and a brief scan of the horizon, showed him stealthily following the Uzumaki girl. Since his night had quickly turned from boring to amusing with the blonde’s appearance, and this was technically his job at the moment, Shisui decided to follow.

 

The messy-haired teen thoroughly enjoyed the next two hours of watching Naruto return various useless papers to the Hyuuga clan members, while teasing his younger cousin about the pretty thief that had ‘stolen his heart’. Itachi bore the teasing with all of the stoicness he was known for, while inwardly questioning how his means of revenge had backfired so badly on him. Unaware of either Jounin-level stalker was Naruto, who completed her tasks and then happily swiped the plate of cookies conveniently left out on the Clan Head’s kitchen table.

 

x

 

Hiashi Hyuuga cloaked his eardrums in a thin layer of chakra, temporarily increasing their sensitivity, and allowing him to hear the elder Uchiha’s jibes to the younger one about his love life. It was rather amusing, and even more so, when they saw the baked goods that Hiashi had instructed his chef to leave out for Minato’s daughter.

 

The Head of the Hyuuga Clan had been momentarily taken aback when one of the Branch Members on patrol had entered his office with the news that an Academy student was sneaking around the premises and stealing old papers from the clan. The strange choice of theft, as well as the identity of the thief, had led the man to seek Hiashi before apprehending the girl. Hiashi had responded by telling his concerned clansman that it was a test he had devised on securing important documents, and that they had failed terribly. Naruto had managed to break into five houses, before she was ‘caught’ by a lucky guard, after all. 

 

Then he decided to use these strange, but harmless, thefts for his own advantage. The main one was that he was able to increase his clansman’s own perceptiveness and vigilance, with minimal loss. Another advantage was that he would be able to draft an Uchiha policeman to stay up all night for an Academy thief, which was petty, but amused him greatly. And when Itachi Uchiha was one of the two police officers sent to him- unusual, since he had only expected one- Hiashi was able to explore a growing suspicion.

 

According to his daughter, who had the poor, if occasionally useful, habit of stalking the jinchuuriki, the Uzumaki was receiving notes from an ANBU member with a mask description matching the Uchiha heir’s. Hinata was intensely jealous of this unknown ANBU, who was able to interact with her idol without the awkwardness of face-to-face conversations, and complained extensively to him. Well, complained in a manner that only his kindhearted daughter did, wherein she tearfully hiccuped vague threats and ate her weight in cinnamon buns. 

 

Hiashi had formed his own suspicions from that, and this night had proven them true. Fugaku’s boy was indeed romantically inclined towards the blonde girl, and, in a stunning display of forward-thinking, was courting her before any child her own age would think to do so. Since the child had repeatedly rebuffed Shibi’s son, the Uchiha Clan had indeed managed to secure the girl’s affections, and subsequently, the Namikaze name, fortune, and clan techniques. 

 

It was a shame that Hiashi hadn’t thought to push Neji in that direction before. Well, it was too late to make a play for the young girl now. His nephew was a talented boy and a prodigy in his own right, but he wasn’t ANBU-at-eleven Itachi Uchiha either. 

 

_ ‘One point to you, Fugaku,’ _ Hiashi admitted, grudgingly, ‘ _ Stealing the Yondaime’s daughter, before she even graduated the Academy was a masterful move. _ ’ 

 

x


	5. Chapter 5

Shibi Aburame had been having a strange day. 

 

This had occurred precisely twelve minutes after he reached the fourth floor of the Hokage Tower for the weekly meeting of the Konoha Council. The man with the high-collar tan coat had taken the second seat on the left side of the Sandaime, signifying his clan’s noble status and prolonged dedication to Konoha, when Hiashi Hyuuga coughed gently next to him. Shibi had turned to offer his greetings, as was customary between the two men with complementary abilities, whose clans had worked extensively with one another, when the first oddity occurred.

 

After exchanging their usual greetings, Hiashi made an unexpected request. 

 

“I was wondering if my daughter could join your son during his chakra control exercises,” the white-eyed man asked. 

 

Behind Shibi’s dark shades, his own eyes widened. This was unusual. Their families were afforded a good relationship, but they had never been close enough for joint training sessions between the clan heirs. And while Hiashi was atypically more involved in village affairs than his predecessors, the Aburame had not expected him to be liberal enough to entrust his daughter’s training to another clan. 

 

However, alienating the Hyuuga Clan Head over this simple request would be unwise, so Shibi agreed.

 

“My son practices tree-walking every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday after school,” Shibi informed him, “He has previously done this within the clan, but prefers to practice on Training Ground 2 now.”

 

Hiashi nodded, appearing unsurprised. Shibi would have marked this as another oddity, if not for the Hyuuga’s well-known penchant for gathering information. The man had one of the most intensive spy networks within the village, surpassed only by Danzo Shimura and the Sandaime himself.

 

“I will inform my daughter that she is to seek out your son after class,” Hiashi replied. Shibi inclined his head forward in lieu of an answer. “I must congratulate you for having your son befriend Minato’s daughter early, even if Fugaku’s boy got the march on all of us.”

 

“Thank you,” Shibi said, politely. He wondered when his son made a connection with Naruto Uzumaki. Shino had not informed him of a developing friendship yet, but he did seem pleased when they discussed his work at the Academy last night. One part of the statement confused him though. “Fugaku’s boy?”

 

“The elder one is courting the girl,” Hiashi elaborated, “Did you not know?”

 

The Aburame shook his head in the negative, and the other man gave him a sympathetic glance. “Yes, I was surprised when I heard the news too. I wouldn’t have even considered the potential of a connection until she was much older. Shame that Fugaku had the foresight to preempt us all now.”

 

“He must have been subtle about the endeavor,” Shibi observed. The older man had not heard a whisper of the Uchiha heir interacting with the Yondaime’s daughter before now, though both parties were prominent enough to be raised under the public eye. Fugaku must have successfully hidden his plans for a long time now, if the courtship had progressed to the point where Hiashi wasn’t making an attempt with his own clansman. 

 

“Stealing the Namikaze name and legacy from under our very noses,” Hiashi’s voice contained a mixture of envy and reluctant admiration, “I wouldn’t have even known had my daughter not been enamoured with the girl. And by then Fugaku’s boy had progressed to leaving love letters and sharing basic training techniques.”

 

“Then you would like to ingratiate your daughter with the next Uchiha Matriarch?” Shibi summarized, having inferred that his son was training with Naruto Uzumaki outside of the clan. The white-eyed man gave an elegant shrug.

 

“They say that Itachi Uchiha is the greatest genius of his generation,” Hiashi said frankly, “He holds the highest scores in Academy history, next to Minato Namikaze, and now he is courting an Uzumaki jinchuuriki. Surely you see the parallels Itachi and Naruto have with Minato and Kushina?”

 

Shibi was not able to reply, before the meeting was called. As the other councillors discussed tax incentives for textile merchants and participating in the Kumo Chuunin Exams though, the Aburame’s mind was immersed in the previous conversation. 

 

There were implicit connections between all of the previous Hokages: the Nidaime had been the Shodaime’s brother and the Sandaime had been the Shodaime’s student. Even the Yondaime had been the personal apprentice of the Sandaime’s student, and the husband of the Nidaime's illegitimate granddaughter. The top candidates for Godaime were Danzo Shimura, student of the Nidaime, the Sannin, students of the Sandaime, and Kakashi Hatake, student of the Yondaime. Should this pattern hold, then future Hokages would also be drawn from this interconnected web of teachers and students; a web that the Uchiha clan were firmly excluded from.

 

Moreover, there were certain prerequisites that Shibi knew were attached to the Hokage position. A minimal A-rank on the Bingo Books, support of the Jounin Council, and the favor of the Daimyo were all public expectations. Privately, the Hokage also needed international notoriety, extensive knowledge of Konoha’s military, leadership experience, and the loyalty of the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. The last point- namely the blonde’s choice of wife- had tipped the scales in Minato’s favor when the council was deciding between Orochimaru and the Namikaze for Hokage.

 

Now Fugaku was pushing his eldest son, who had already been favorably compared to the Yondaime previously, on the man’s only daughter. Should that be a long-term ploy for the Hokage position, than the Uchiha Head’s matchmaking was even more bold than Shibi had originally believed. It was well-known that the Uchiha had never quite forgiven the village for choosing a succession of Senju-aligned Hokages, but now, rather than fight the other founding clan directly, they were capitalizing on the Senju’s history to push the Uchiha into power. It was a brilliant move.

 

Shibi was even more impressed by the fact that Fugaku chose the young jinchuuriki as his entry point into the nexus of village power. The Aburame had never believed the rumors about the Uchiha setting the Kyuubi on Konoha- because if Fugaku Uchiha had been capable of taming Bijuu, then everyone would have heard about it, from the man himself- but this involved another level of daring. Few could give credence to those rumors, if the Uchiha Clan were not only protesting their innocence, but publicly aligning themselves with the jinchuuriki in question. The Aburame was confident that if there was any truth to those Kyuubi rumors, than the Sandaime would have swiftly shut down those matchmaking schemes.

 

‘ _ To think that we hadn’t even sensed a hint of his plan, until he had already pulled it off, _ ’ Shibi thought, admiringly, ‘ _ I shall have to congratulate Fugaku, when he’s ready to publically claim his success. And that Shino’s first friend would be the Kyuubi jinchuuriki and the Uchiha genius’ girlfriend was a stroke of luck for my family. _ ’

 

x

 

Said stroke of luck was scowling over her breakfast cup ramen, as she read the latest note to arrive from her possibly-not-a-Hyuuga pen pal.

 

‘ _...was sneaking into the Hyuuga Compound really necessary? I told you that I wasn’t a Hyuuga before, and that my identity needed to remain secret for work. Stealing miscellaneous papers and snacks from the Hyuuga Clan- and the Clan Head, no less- won’t help your curiosity, and I would prefer if you decided to drop the investigation entirely. Breaking in and stealing from the compound of a noble clan is a felony offense, Naruto. You could have gotten into serious trouble, if Hiashi-san wanted to press charges. And it would have all been for nothing, because I am  _ not _ a Hyuuga…’  _

 

_ ‘But how else could you have  _ known _? _ ’ Naruto mentally wailed, ‘ _ How would you know what houses I was breaking into, if you’re not living there?! And why do you call him Hiashi-san? _ ’

 

The blonde didn’t know which part of the note was more upsetting at the moment. The realization that she hadn’t gotten away with her burglaries after all, or the knowledge that her ANBU friend was upset with her. Though the latter was partially negated by the Uzumaki’s belief that her pen pal was trying to mess with her head. Either he was a Hyuuga, who was badly pretending not to be a Hyuuga, or he was a non-Hyuuga pretending to be a Hyuuga, who was badly pretending not to be a Hyuuga. 

 

Regardless, his rebuke had done nothing to deter her investigation. Naruto was still maddeningly curious about the true identity of her first friend.

 

‘ _ It’s not like I know what his mask looks like, _ ’ the blonde thought, miserably, ‘ _ Hanging out together in real life wouldn’t risk his ANBU identity. Does he not want to be seen with me in public? _ ’

 

The idea that their fledgling friendship wouldn’t hold up to the public’s scrutiny made an uncomfortable squirm develop in Naruto’s stomach. She wanted to ask the ANBU if he was ashamed of her, in her next note, but also didn’t want to risk an unhappy reply. And now she was doubting her first friend, which only made Naruto feel  _ more _ guilty and miserable. 

 

Tossing her half-finished breakfast away- when even ramen noodles tasted like ash, Naruto knew something was wrong- she finished getting ready for school. The Academy reminded her of her other friend, and that made the Uzumaki feel a little better. She knew that Shino wasn’t ashamed to be seen with her, and the Aburame made a good friend. He wasn’t much of a conversationalist, but he listened attentively when she would chatter on and on, and he liked to train almost as much as she did! 

 

They were going to practice their chakra control exercises after school, and Naruto was particularly excited about that. Shino had finally managed to reach the top of the tree yesterday, and the blonde was eager to see him tumble into the water now. He had found her own mishaps hilarious- with that glasses-adjusting, amused huffing that Shino preferred- and this was just revenge in Naruto’s opinion. 

 

Most of her class had gotten used to their unexpected friendship, so no one looked over as Naruto cheerfully bounced over to the Aburame’s seat. “Ready to swim with the fishes, bug boy?”

 

“I really hope you don’t understand that reference,” Shino muttered, before tipping his head upwards, “Hello Naruto. Have you had a good morning so far?” 

 

“Nothing too interesting,” the blonde replied, shrugging her shoulders. 

 

They exchanged a few more pleasantries, before Iruka-sensei came in and shouted the rowdier kids into submission. What followed was a geography lecture that was dull even by Iruka’s mind-numbing standards, and Naruto didn’t feel the least bit remorseful about doodling in her book. From the corner of her eye, she could see that Shino was diligently taking notes, and wondered- not for the first time- what made her quiet friend such an eager student.

 

It couldn’t have been a clan heir thing, because Shikamaru was blatantly _ sleeping _ in the front of class.

 

Naruto perked up when the lunch bell rang, and the two friends made their way to the rooftop lunch spot. None of their senseis bothered to punish the two for eating in an area explicitly banned for students. Having almost every authority figure in her life determinedly pretend that she didn’t exist did have its benefits.

 

“I was experimenting with a new cake recipe,” were the first words out of the blonde’s mouth, as she dug a crumbly yellow slab out of her bento box, “It’s pineapple and lemon flavored, and very sweet. I brought some over for your kikachu.” 

 

With some of the citrusy lemon filling oozing through the top, being overtly sweet may have been an understatement. However, the platoon guard of kikachu sweeping out of Shino’s sleeve to carry the treat away suggested that this was preferable. A giggle escaped Naruto’s mouth as the kikachu’s ticklish wings brushed over her palm.

 

Cooking was one of Naruto’s favorite hobbies, but her inventive nature made the results come down to a flip of a coin. Some of her dishes were surprisingly delicious, while others made racoons avoid her building’s trash. Her winter melon and shrimp soup had been a hit with Shino though, so Naruto made a thermos for him every now and then.

 

“Thank you,” Shino replied, on behalf of his allies, “How are you intending to study for this week’s exams, Naruto? I ask, because I’ve seen you draw violent scenes in your notebook during class rather than pay attention to Iruka-sensei’s lecture.”

 

“It’s doodle therapy,” the blonde defended. “If I skewer stick-figure Sasuke on paper, then I’m not tempted to punch the teme’s face in, whenever he starts talking about how great his clan or his big brother is.”

 

“Sasuke does bring that topic up often,” Shino admitted, “But how do you intend to pass the test?”

 

“Well, I  _ do _ happen to have a totally awesome best friend, who can actually stay awake through Iruka’s lectures,” Naruto said slyly, widening her naturally large blue eyes, “He probably has all of these great notes about Kusa-something-or-the-other and Taku-whats-it that he can share with me!”

 

“Takigakure is our main ally outside of the five great shinobi villages,” the Aburame began lecturing, before he paused, “You would know that if you had taken the time to pay attention in class, Naruto. I will not be sharing my notes with you. You need to face the consequences of your actions.”

 

Naruto made a face. “Why does everyone say that to me?”

 

“Because you are a talented student that refuses to apply herself,” Shino answered, “On what basis do I make that claim? Because I’ve seen you learn advanced chakra control techniques, and use a C-rank fuuton jutsu effectively. You are only hurting yourself by relying on me to help you pass tests.”

 

“But Iruka is sooo booriing,” Naruto whined, though a pleased glint did enter her eyes, “And I’ll learn everything from your notes and lectures  _ anyway _ . C’mon, Shino, you know you love to show off how smart you are.”

 

Despite the shades covering the boy’s eyes, Naruto knew that her friend was throwing her an indignant look. “I do  _ not _ .”

 

“Sure, you do,” the blonde rejoined, putting her chopsticks down, so she could form a begging pose, “Oh, please, please,  _ please _ help me, Shino Aburame, keeper of all-important test knowledge and savior of slackers everywhere! I need your benevolence and wisdom to pass! If I do, then we might have winter melon soup to celebrate.”

 

Shino adjusted his glasses, and Naruto knew that he was wavering. In order to push him just that little bit further, the blonde jutted her lower lip out, in a pout that always convinced Ojii-san to empty his wallet for ramen. When the brunette sighed, the Uzumaki knew that she had won.

 

“Fine, but this is the _ last _ time,” Shino grumbled, as though this wasn’t the third incarnation of this promise, “I’m enabling your bad habits, Naruto.”

 

“And you are being well-paid for your sacrifice,” the blonde promised, “Look on the bright side, Shino! Shoving all of this useless knowledge into my head is the greatest exercise of patience ever devised by man. By the time we graduate, you could take over your father’s place in the village council.”

 

“Why would anyone want that?” Shino asked, genuinely baffled. “It would be an even bigger headache than getting that leaf to stick on you.”

 

Naruto shrugged. They had managed to attach one to her eventually. On her feet, where the least amount of chakra could be channeled.

 

“I am willing to encourage good behavior another way though,” Shino said, the undercurrent of his voice filled with anticipation, “Do you remember those old clan texts I mentioned before?”

 

The blonde nodded, dubiously. “Yes, but why would I care about your clansman's diaries?”

 

“One of the duties of the Aburame clan heir is to read as many journals as they can,” Shino explained, pushing his bento box away, and taking out a rectangular shaped parcel from his jacket pocket. “Last year, I read one by Aburame Matsuko, a Chuunin from before the Second Great Shinobi War. She wasn’t involved in any significant battles, but did travel extensively throughout the Land of Water and surrounding countries as a suiton-using tracking specialist. There were several passages written in her journal about an allied village in the Land of Whirlpools, and its main clan, the Uzumaki.”

 

Naruto paused, her entire world becoming cold and brittle for a moment, as her surname was spoken. The trivial package, wrapped in rough butcher’s paper, suddenly became the focus of her attention, as Shino unwrapped a faded red book. The yellowish-white colouring of the pages spoke of clear age, but it was held with care, as the Aburame opened it.

 

“It begins on this page, and extends to the other side,” her friend said quietly, handing the book over, “There’s a few more sentences near the end of the journal, but Matsuko was not prone to lengthy prose. We might find other- better- chronicles of the Uzumaki in the clan’s archives.”

 

The blonde barely acknowledged his words, but Shino didn’t seem to mind as Naruto reverentially ran her finger down the page. In wide, loopy handwriting…

 

‘ _ Reached Uzushiogakure tonight. The water lanterns were bobbing underneath the waves, letting the Akagawa helmsmen steer us through the whirlpools. Dark night, but stars above and fires below made it beautiful. Asked how they made the flames waterproof, but told that it was a village secret. Moki got seasick, but man at docks gave us mint leaf tea. Didn’t get to see much of village yet. Shame. Heard the capital was the pride of Whirlpool. _

 

_ Woken up from hotel room by Uzumaki, holding some more mint leaf tea. Blood red hair, loud mouth, and strange tattoos all over his arms. Says they’re seals, and I’m willing to believe it. Inked scribbles are everywhere, and people move through the village as though their winding, crooked, crossway streets make sense. There’s a big river bisecting the entire village, and smaller canals lining most of the buildings. We mostly use the bridges that are scattered everywhere, but most people, even those who aren’t shinobi, water-walk to their destinations. _

 

_ City is very bright. Walls are painted with blue, red, white, and yellow, and buildings are almost as crooked as the streets they’re on. Terraces and ivy-plants are popular, but most trees are mangroves that grow outside of the main city. People are even more colourful. Red is the dominant hair colour, but brown, green, and blue hair are also common, while violet and green eyes are typical. People looked wary, until they saw the Konoha headbands. Kito got glared at anyway, but that was for the Uchiha fan on his back. _

 

_ Village doesn’t have a Kage, but met the Warden of the Spiral. Another Uzumaki, with black-red hair and bite marks all over his neck, met us. Sat in a circular office, and greeted us politely. Offered us tea- mint leaf again- before handing us the scroll for the Kiyomaro Defense. The Sandaime wants to add the sealing array to Konoha’s Outer Wall. Thanked him. Was about to leave, before he called out to Kiyo. Wanted to know if he was related to Kagami. Kiyo said ‘yes’, as Kagami was his Uncle. Warden said that he’s a great man. Kiyo looked uncomfortable. _ ’

 

When Naruto was done reading the passage, each word committed to memory so that she could savour it fully at home, she silently returned the book to Shino. Without any instruction, the Aburame found the final mention of her clan, and returned the book back to her.

 

‘ _ Tracked the blasted Kamizuru past Konoha’s western borders. Idiot didn’t think it through, because he stumbled onto a team of three Uzu shinobi several miles outside of Whirlpool. Ship capsized from a strange sealing technique, paper wrapped around thrown kunai made the bottom of the boat rot rapidly. The kunoichi had white hair, fair skin, three triangular markings on her face, and used Suiton jutsu. Recognized Kiyo again, as one of Kagami’s relatives. Called him [Kagami] a noble fool. Too distracted to ask if she was related to the Nidaime. Handed Kamizuru over to us without any trouble. _ ’

 

When Naruto finally put the book down, she became aware of the wet tracks on either side of her face. “One hell of an incentive for studying, Shino.”

 

“You should know about your family,” the Aburame replied, taking out a folded piece of paper, “I need to take the journal back, but I copied the relevant passages down here, for you.”

 

The blonde girl had tensed when Shino spoke of returning the journal, but a tremulous smile crossed her face when she accepted the paper. “Do you really think they’re my family, Shino? I don’t have red hair, or know anything about seals, or even  _ like _ mint leaf tea. It makes me feel nauseous.”

 

“Then you inherited your mother’s hair colour, instead of the Uzumaki red,” Shino said, placing a hand on her arm, reassuringly, “You can learn about seals, if you want to. Being related to someone doesn’t mean that you share the same tastes; my cousin never ate winter melon, for example.”

 

The blonde nodded absently. “You’re a good friend, Shino Aburame. I’m going to make so much winter melon and shrimp soup for you, that you’ll end up hating it.”

 

“You’re welcome to try,” the boy responded, smiling. The two sat there, with the blonde girl unexpectedly silent, until the bell rang for class. When Naruto returned to her seat, her main thought was that she needed to find another shoebox for a second series of lifechanging notes.

 

x

 

Shino had been looking forward to his first lesson on water-walking, which was a skill that the Aburame clan typically didn’t share with their Academy level members, but could be learned from Naruto and her mysterious source of shinobi scrolls. However, he saw how unsettled his friend had been from those messages, and so he offered to leave it until the next day, so she could reflect quietly at home. The dark-haired boy tried to hide his satisfaction, when Naruto insisted that she wanted to train instead.

 

The blonde had scarcely shared this, as they were walking out, before Sasuke’s voice caught their attention.

 

“Aniki!” The excited, and attention-grabbing, sound caused both of them to look towards the Uchiha. Their classmate was eagerly almost-running to two older, dark-haired teens that were standing by the side of the Academy wooden fence. Shino judged the unsmiling one to be Sasuke’s oft-praised older brother, as he was the one the youngest Uchiha turned to first. 

 

“They look more like slobbering puppies than kunoichi,” Naruto groaned, her eyes on the crowd of female classmates trailing after the popular Uchiha. Many of them were giggling and blushing, as they looked between Sasuke and the older boy, with the straight, black hair and Chuunin vest.

 

Shino personally thought they looked more like rabid hyenas than harmless puppies, but before he could share this, his eyes caught something else. “Naruto, why is that Uchiha staring at you?”

 

“Huh? What are you talking about?” Naruto followed his gaze, and her deep blue eyes fell on the taller, messy-haired teen. When the Uchiha saw that he had caught her attention, he gave her a cheeky smile and a friendly wave. “Are you sure he wasn’t looking at you?”

 

“I do not believe so. Why do you ask? Because he did not wave when I was looking at him,” Shino reported, adjusting his glasses, “That Uchiha looks familiar to me, Naruto.”

 

“Well, I have no idea who he is,” the girl replied, staring oddly at the older teen, who continued to aim a grin at her. “Maybe I pranked him before?”

 

“He doesn’t appear antagonistic towards you,” her friend pointed out.

 

“Er… than I should wave back?” Naruto said awkwardly. She raised her hand and hesitantly moved it back and forth, receiving a beaming grin in response. The blonde’s eyes were drawn to the other teen then, who was looking away from Sasuke and directly towards her. There was a familiarity in his gaze that discomforted her for a moment, before he looked at the messy-haired teen pointedly, and both Uchiha stopped looking in her direction.

 

The blonde released her breath. “That was intense.”

 

“Strangely so,” was Shino’s contribution. He nodded towards her backpack, which held the copied messages from Aburame Matsuko’s journal. “Want to ask them if they’re related to Kagami Uchiha?”

 

It might have been the stress of her day so far, but Naruto found that statement to be funnier than it should be. “Not a chance. Have you- eh, Hyuuga?”

 

There was a familiar scent approaching her- a strangely attractive blend of lavender, pomegranate, and cinnamon- before a blue-haired, white-eyed, figure stepped in front of her. Hinata Hyuuga’s fair skin was blushing fiercely as she shoved a wrapped plastic container into Naruto’s arms. 

 

Then she fell into a rapid bow. “I-I’m-here-to-train-with-you, U-Uzumaki-san, Aburame-san!” Hinata said quickly, “Please-accept-these-treats!”

 

Naruto blinked, trying to understand the rapid-fire talking. The Hyuuga was still bending down, so, fortunately, Shino was able to formulate a reply. “Thank you, Hyuuga-san. We’ll be happy to train with you today.”

 

As Hinata straightened from her bow, the blonde looked down at the container, and grinned. “Ooh, orange cookies! Thanks, Hinata!”

 

The Hyuuga heiress, seeing a wide, genuine, and happy smile on her idol, directed entirely at  _ her _ , from less than a feet away, could only react in one manner. She fainted.

 

“Eh?! Oh no, we killed Hinata!” Naruto panicked, “She was too young! She had so much to live for!”

 

As Naruto was freaked out of her classmate, and Shino was caught between assuring her that Hinata was still alive and trying to lift the unconscious Hyuuga, they were unaware of the spectacle they began to make. They were also unaware of how  _ three  _ Uchiha were now staring in their direction, eyes alit with amusement, curiosity, and disdain respectively. 

 

Most of all, they were unaware of Shisui leaning in to whisper into his best friend’s ear. “I think you have competition now, Itachi.”

 

x

 

When Hinata opened her eyes, orbs of deep blue were staring into her, and nearly caused her to faint once again. However, the knowledge that she had already disgraced herself in front of the Uzumaki once before, firmed her spine enough that a mere squeak escaped her lips.

 

“You’re awake,” Naruto grinned with relief, apparently unaware of the backflips that Hinata’s stomach was making from her closeness. The blonde rocked back on her heels, and the Hyuuga became aware that she was leaning against a leather object. Presumably a book bag, since she could feel the sharp end of a pen digging into her neck.  

 

“We are glad to see that you have not suffered any lasting injuries,” a male voice could be heard, and when Hinata turned her head, she saw Shino standing there, “You may have temporarily been overcome by heat stroke. Naruto suggested that we place you under some shade for relief.”

 

‘ _ Naruto helped me?’ _ Hinata thought, a tint of red entering her cheeks, ‘ _ I shouldn’t be surprised. She is such a kind person. _ ’

 

The bluenette recalled exactly what she needed help from, and felt her embarrassment ratchet upwards. ‘ _ I fainted in front of her! She must think that I’m terribly weak. _ ’

 

“You mentioned training with us, so we brought you to Training Ground 2,” Naruto added, gesturing to the shrubbery around her, “It was pretty easy since you were so light, Hinata. And I hope you don’t mind, but I tried one of the cookies. They were delicious!”

 

“I-I do not m-mind,” Hinata managed, staring determinedly at Shino. Her nervousness was much less apparent, when she didn’t have Naruto’s captivating blue eyes to unravel her composure. “I’m glad that you liked them, U-Uzumaki-san.”

 

That exchange had passed through with barely any stutters, and Hinata was quite proud of herself for that. Ha! And Hanabi said that practicing lines for her eventual talk with Naruto-chan was silly.

 

“You can call me Naruto! And I did like them, though you didn’t have to bring snacks,” Naruto replied, “Shino sad that his dad and your dad arranged a joint training session? Do you want me to leave?”

 

“No!” Hinata’s reaction was too immediate to be anything but genuine, and the part of Naruto that noticed how the other girl avoided her eyes, relaxed. When the Hyuuga’s white eyes returned to her, the Uzumaki gave her a happy smile, and Hinata’s stomach began to flutter again.

 

For all that the bluenette had trouble talking to or interacting with her cheerful, determined, and optimistic blonde idol, there was no accusation of ignorance that could be leveled upon her. Hinata Hyuuga was a girl that definitely knew what she wanted.

 

“Then we should begin our training,” Shino interjected himself into the conversation again, feeling mildly amused as he correctly read Hinata’s actions, “Are you proficient with the tree-walking technique?”

 

Dark blue bangs whipped left and right, as the Hyuuga shook her head. “I-I can get to the t-top, but I take too much t-time.”

 

Shino gave her a pleased smile. “That is good then. Why do I say that? Because I am at the same level, and Naruto is only slightly ahead of us, in the water-walking technique. We shall be able to progress together, and, hopefully, master the two techniques before this year’s end.” 

 

‘ _ Naruto already knows the tree-walking technique? _ ’ Hinata considered, amazed. That was an advanced chakra control skill that was often taught at the genin level. As the heirs of noble clans that relied heavily on proper regulation of chakra, Shino and Hinata were taught the ability, but a civilian orphan like Naruto doing so, was far more impressive. Especially since chakra control was one of the subjects that her idol had significant trouble with at the Academy.

 

‘ _ Even though she lacks the natural talent for chakra control, Naruto has managed to progress further than all of our classmates, even the genius Uchiha, _ ’ Hinata thought glowingly, ‘ _ Her determination and hard work has made her an even stronger ninja. And now she’s trying to learn an even more difficult chakra control exercise. Truly, Naruto Uzumaki is the most amazing person I know. _ ’

 

“I w-will not h-hold you back,” Hinata said, drawing her inspiration from her idol’s success. She steeled her spine, faced the blonde, and then spoke one of her favorite practice sentences. “L-let us train together, Naruto-chan!”

 

x

 

Naruto returned to her apartment for a satisfying cup ramen dinner, after having a rather tumultuous day. She had received another note from her ANBU, learned a little about her heritage, had a strange encounter with an Uchiha, and even made a tentative new friend. The blonde was so exhausted that she fell asleep immediately after dinner, without even a cursory look at the notes Shino had given her, and wondered what would occur next. She found that the remainder of her week would be a study of contrasts. 

 

The Uzumaki was disappointed to find that she couldn’t raid the Aburame archives with Shino the next day, as permission had to be requested from the clan’s Elders first. Her friend had sent off a dispatch, but they hadn’t received an answer yet, which left the blonde feeling jittery and anxious. Naruto was tempted to break into the Aburame Compound, but recalled how Hiashi Hyuuga had chosen not to press charges for her previous burglaries. She didn’t want to risk her luck a second time, especially since Shino’s dad could either jail her or force his son to end their friendship, and the latter was far worse for Naruto.

 

On the other hand, Naruto had made some progress with both her water-walking training and her new friendship with Hinata. The Hyuuga heiress was strange. There was no doubt about that. Her face would rapidly turn crimson at random times of the day- even when the sun was down- for no apparent reason. She poked her fingers together whenever she spoke, and half the time, Naruto would look up from the water to see Hinata staring at her oddly. Still, she was a sweet and intelligent girl, who readily handed her notes over to Naruto upon request.

 

To be honest, after the second time, the blonde started to feel like she was taking advantage of the adorable Hyuuga, and returned to asking Shino instead. Only that seemed to upset Hinata even more, so Naruto eventually resorted to actually paying attention in class. The sacrifices she made for friendship.

 

She hadn’t met that weird Uchiha again, but, with everything that occurred to her, that strange meeting had fallen by the wayside. Most of her attention was on those amazing, incredible, wonderful, enthralling,  _ heartbreaking  _ words that Matsuko had written. The bare recollections of a dead woman proved that she had a family once, people that shared her last name and possibly even more. Naruto had read a little about Uzushiogakure in the Academy textbook, and it merely said that they were a minor shinobi village that specialized in fuuinjutsu and was destroyed in the Second Shinobi War.

 

That knowledge was reminiscent of a minor trickle of water to a parched woman trapped in the deserts of the Land of Wind, and Naruto utterly thirsted for more. She couldn’t enter the Aburame archives, her textbooks were bare of information, and her monthly meeting with Ojiisan was weeks away, so Naruto turned to her final information source.

 

‘ _ My friend, Shino, taught me a little about an Uzumaki Clan in Uzushiogakure today. You mentioned that history was your favorite subject. Do you know anything about them? _ ’

 

‘ _ The Uzumaki were a clan of fuuinjutsu specialists that were prominent in the Land of Whirlpools. They intermarried with the Senju Clan often, and established the oldest village alliance in shinobi history with the marriage of Hashirama Senju and Mito Uzumaki. The clan’s friendship can be symbolized by the spiral symbol within Konoha’s leaf, that all shinobi wear on their flak jackets.  _

 

_ They did not have a specific bloodline, but the Uzumaki were famous for the vitality of their life force and their strong chakra reserves. Almost all members had blood red hair and either violet or green eyes, though a few would inherit brown or grey eyes instead. In the Second Shinobi War, they were destroyed by the combined forces of Kiri, Kumo, and Iwa, as their fuuinjutsu skills were considered to be too powerful to exist. _ ’

 

‘ _ My hair is blonde, and my eyes are blue. Does that mean that I’m not an Uzumaki? _ ’

 

_ ‘You inherited your features from a non-Uzumaki parent, I’m sure. Despite your appearance, you have many characteristics that are common to the Uzumaki Clan, such as your rapid healing.’ _

 

_ ‘I thought if a clan member married a clanless person, then the child would favor the parent with the shinobi bloodline, cause of chakra-infused genes or something?’ _

 

_ ‘As a general rule, generations of clan inbreeding and chakra usage, has made certain features more likely to be present in any offspring. However, should your other parent also be from a clan or possess large quantities of chakra, then you could favor him or her instead. You don’t need to worry about your heritage; you are definitely an Uzumaki.’ _

 

Naruto read this final message, with a considering look on her face. Had Itachi been around to see it, he may have gotten nervous at the almost visible march of thoughts dancing through her mind. The blonde found a few facts to be absolute.

 

She had an Uzumaki parent, most likely a father, since she had that surname.

 

The Uzumaki Clan was famous for their strong chakra, so she should have been born with red hair and violet or green eyes.

 

Naruto was not born with red hair or violet or green eyes.

 

She was born with blonde hair and blue eyes, from a mother with either strong chakra reserves or a clan background of her own.

 

Civilians almost never had strong enough chakra reserves to overshadow a person born from a clan. And, as Naruto’s own reserves could attest, the Uzumaki definitely had powerful chakra. 

 

Naruto’s mother was likely from a clan. 

 

Naruto was born in Konoha. A famous clan residing in Konoha had many blonde-haired, blue-eyed members.

 

The conclusion? Naruto was in need of a long talk with Ino Yamanaka.

 

x


	6. Chapter 6

Naruto Uzumaki was positive that her mother had been a Yamanaka. Unfortunately, the others, namely her erstwhile friends and potential cousin, did not share that confidence. 

 

“No way that someone as unpopular and freakish as you, could be related to me,” Ino snorted, flipping her long, silver-blonde hair over her back. She placed her hands on her hips, and glared at the other girl. “Don’t ever mention that trash in front of me again.”

 

Standing on her right and left side respectively, Shino bristled, and Hinata, unexpectedly, glowered at the Yamanaka’s insults to their friend. In spite of her hime haircut and round, childish face, the Hyuuga’s wide, pearlescent eyes added to the intimidation effect of her stares. For a moment, Ino felt taken aback by the hardened expression, before she remembered that kind-hearted Hinata was the one that was glaring at her.

 

“Logically, it does make sense that we’re related, Ino,” Naruto argued calmly. Despite her facade, she was inwardly worried about being rejected by her potential cousin. “My Dad had red hair and violet or green eyes, and he was clan born. That means I should have had the same features, but I  _ don’t _ . And the only explanation that makes sense is if my mother came from a clan too. I had to have inherited my blonde hair and blue eyes from somewhere!”

 

Ino paused, having to internally admit that this was a good point. However, she still looked at the Uzumaki doubtfully. “I’m not going to say that I believe you, but let’s presume that you’re correct. Even then, you couldn’t be related to my clan. You blonde hair is _ neon yellow _ , and your eyes are much darker than mine. And I’ve never seen anyone in my clan with those whisker marks on their cheeks.” 

 

“Those could be influenced by my Uzumaki parent, especially if he had violet eyes,” Naruto pointed out. She could almost see the way the words reflected off of Ino’s skin. Her best chance to have an honest-to-Kami actual  _ family _ was slipping from her fingers! 

 

The platinum blonde girl regarded the bewhiskered with something akin to pity. “I’m sorry, Naruto, but I just don’t believe that we’re related.”

 

“Isn’t there some way that we can check?” the Uzumaki blurted out, desperation mixed into her voice. She tried to take a step forward, but Shino’s hand- supportive, reassuring,  _ cautious _ \- held her back. That didn’t matter though, because Naruto could read the thoughts flickering across Ino’s face. “There is! You know something we can do!”

 

Ino removed her hands from her hips, and folded her arms. Her face was set into a cast of stubbornness. “So what if I do?”

 

“If you tell me, then I’ll do something for you,” the Uzumaki bartered. Upon seeing the doubtful expression on Ino’s face, she added. “You know that I’m a great prankster. Isn’t there someone you’d like to sabotage for… er, Sasuke’s heart?”

 

_ ‘The dobe does have a point there, _ ’ Ino thought, severely tempted, ‘ _ She’s good at pranking people, but she’s also talented in sneaking around. And all of the other girls would be insanely jealous if I knew… but Daddy said to keep that technique private. Would it really matter though? Only a Yamanaka or a Jounin could use it, and it’s not like Naruto has that much talent. The jutsu will fizzle out, and she can finally drop that crazy cousin idea. _ ’

 

Her common sense and sense of greed warred with one another, before the former finally folded in the Yamanaka’s mind. A wicked grin promptly crossed her face, and Shino gained a sense of foreboding. “Alight, Naruto. There’s one beginner Yamanaka jutsu designed to help students reflect on their sense of self. It’s the first one ever taught to clan members, and I’ll share it with you,  _ if  _ you do something for me.”

 

Naruto’s deep blue eyes brightened with gratitude, and Ino felt the briefest flicker of remorse. The popular girl ruthlessly pushed that feeling away. Her request wasn’t too unreasonable, and Naruto needed to drop that absurd relation idea, before any of the adults learned about it. Ino was practically doing her a favor, even, by teaching her not to be so gullible in the future.

 

“Anything!” the Uzumaki enthused, “Who do you want me to prank?” 

 

“Oh, I don’t want something so plebian as a simple prank for my payment,” Ino replied, airily. A gleeful smirk cross her face. “I want you to do some reconnaissance for me.”

 

“Reconnaissance?” Shino was the one to repeat the word, and his tone was as dry as the Suna desert. 

 

“There’s been an ongoing bet in our class over what type of underwear Sasuke likes to wear,” Ino elaborated, “Personally, I’m confident that he’s a boxers man, but I need  _ proof _ . And you’re going to win that argument for me.”

 

Naruto stared at her blankly. “You think I can convince the teme to share his underwear with me?”

 

Ino forcefully kept herself from scowling at the insult to her beloved crush. “No! I think you can sneak into his house, and steal a pair of underwear for me!”

 

‘ _ Fangirls are scary, _ ’ was the mutual thought of both Shino and Naruto.

 

_ ‘Why doesn’t she just ask a Hyuuga to use the Byakugan on him? _ ’ was Hinata’s question. She was able to relate it through her stutters, and received a slightly incredulous, mildly contemplative, and mostly impressed glance from Ino in response.

 

“Why didn’t I think of that?” Ino wondered aloud, before shaking her head. The silvery-blonde ponytail swung rapidly through the air. “No, only visible proof of his underwear is acceptable for me! If you want that Yamanaka jutsu, then you have to sneak into Sasuke’s house and steal a pair.”

 

This left Naruto in a conundrum. She had absolutely no desire to cross a noble clan, solely for the chance to rifle through the personal undergarments of a boy that she despised. But then, would she have another chance to prove her matrilineal lineage? Most adults didn’t like her, and the Yamanaka ones might refuse to test the blonde on principle. Ino was the only young Yamanaka she knew, and her best means of proving her heritage, before she faced the mind-walking clan.

 

There was always the chance that the Yamanaka might reject her, even after she proved her heritage, but Naruto resolved to cross that bridge when she came to it. Now, her goal was to secure that basic jutsu, and prove that she did have family left in this village.

 

“Fine,” Naruto said, a determined jut to her chin, “I’ll steal Sasuke’s stupid underwear for you, but you have to to give me the jutsu in exchange.”

 

Ino chuckled. “Deal. Nice doing business with you, dobe.”

 

As the Yamanaka turned to flounce away, Naruto took a moment to deeply hope that the other members of her mother’s clan weren’t so difficult to get along with. Then she sighed, and turned towards her second-oldest friend.

 

“Want to scold me?” Naruto asked, resigned. Shino nodded. “Might as well do it now, then.”

 

By all accounts, Hinata would later relate to her sister, it was a very thorough rebuke.

 

x

 

The end of Naruto’s most recent message did not inspire great confidence in her pen pal.

 

‘... _ I’ve been considering a lot of strange incidents in my life lately, and I think I’ve come to a conclusion that explains all of them. One of my classmates promised to help me prove my hypothesis, if I agreed to do something for her. You would disapprove of the agreement I made, so I’ll wait until I’m done to explain it to you. Then you can scold me as much as you like, though I should mention that Shino has already made it clear- in no uncertain terms- what a terrible and reckless idea it is. _ ’

 

_ ‘Now, if only you _ listened  _ to the Aburame, _ ’ Itachi mused, unexpectedly frustrated as he rinsed his hair. The soapy white bubbles swirled down the shower drain, as the dark-haired teen took a moment to enjoy his hot shower. ‘ _ She can’t have learned about the Kyuubi- could she? _ ’

 

Itachi knew that the blonde girl had inferred a few details of her parentage from her Aburame friend, and made the logical assumption that Naruto’s natural inquisitiveness and thirst for knowledge about her family, would drive her to search further. However, it remained a long stretch to jump from Uzumaki to fuuinjutsu, from fuuinjutsu to jinchuuriki, and from jinchuuriki to herself. No, this conclusion of hers was not drawn from the worst-kept S-rank secret in Konoha, but from a false presumption that would only get the blonde in trouble.

 

_ ‘How am I supposed to look out for her, if she doesn’t tell me anything?’ _ the Uchiha griped, stepping out of the shower and beginning to dry himself, ‘ _ She didn’t even mention Shisui’s flippant wave, and that should certainly be the type of strange event that Naruto would previously discuss with her pen pal. Maybe she doesn’t feel the need to do so anymore, when she has the Aburame and the Hyuuga for her confidantes. _ ’

 

There was a sliver of dissatisfaction attached to that thought, and Itachi wondered why this would bother him. Could the Uchiha honestly begrudge the lonely blonde, friends of her own age? Sure, he had believed that a mutual trust had grown between them, but Itachi’s communications were limited to notes and the occasional gift. A child needed more interaction than that, and Itachi was happy that Naruto had more people to rely on. Really, he was.

 

‘ _ I’m irritated that Naruto would share her reckless plans with the Aburame, when I am in a better position to help her, _ ’ Itachi decided, tying the damp towel around his waist, ‘ _ That she chose to do this, shows a lack of common sense that I disapprove of. _ ’

 

With the minimal information he had now, the dark-haired teen wouldn’t be able to provide efficient assistance to his troublemaker friend. Itachi resolved to press her for more details later, and stepped outside of the humid bathroom. His hair was still dripping, and a mere towel clinging to his lank form provided modesty, as his clothes were left in his room. Itachi had never had a problem with this previously, as the private quarters of his home did not afford visitors, and he lived with only his immediate family anyway.

 

It was to be expected that a panicked blonde missile chose this moment to barrel into the half-naked Uchiha heir.

 

x

 

Sneaking into the Uchiha Compound was far easier than Naruto had expected it to be. That was probably because Shino’s kikachu had found a few trees that could be easily climbed to get over the compound’s wall, and Hinata’s Byakugan estimated the best routes to avoid random Uchiha. Naruto hadn’t allowed either of her friends to do the actual breaking and entering with her- using the argument that three people were easier to catch than one, and neither had mastered the tree-walking skill yet- so they hugged her outside of the walls. Honestly, the blonde simply wanted to give them plausible deniability, as their actions would reflect poorly on their entire clan, whereas she was pretty much disliked by everyone anyway.

 

“Grab the underwear quickly, and get out,” Shino instructed, crinkling his nose, “Don’t waste your time by setting up a prank for Sasuke.”

 

“G-good luck,” Hinata added, poking her fingers together, “I h-hope you do w-well, Naruto-chan.” 

 

“Ha, this is nothing for Konoha’s Prankster Queen!” Naruto boasted. The blonde hid her nerves under a wide grin and a flashy thumb’s up. Shino smiled, and Hinata- strangely- flushed bright red.

 

Naruto was seriously starting to worry about the health of that poor girl.

 

She made a mental note to talk to Shino about it later, as she scrambled up the tree, half climbing and half clinging with chakra, and then jumped down on the other side. There was a muffled thumping sound, as her feet hit the packed ground, and Naruto internally winced as her adrenaline blew that mild sound into an attention-grabbing shriek. Trying to ignore the somersaults of her heart, the blonde made the first right at the corner, and mentally recited the instructions Hinata had given.

 

Left, left, two blocks forward, duck into an alley, make a right, tree-walk over that house, climb down this drainpipe, make a right, a left, and then another right, and, for the love of Kami, keep your head down. The neon yellow locks were tucked into a cap, her distinctive orange jacket had been traded for a plain grey one, and baking powder discoloured the whisker marks on her cheeks. Not that any of this was necessary, as Naruto didn’t come across a single Uchiha.

 

Well, almost. Shisui paused, when he was body-flickering to the hot springs, to wonder why the Hyuuga Thief was sneaking around the Uchiha Compound, and heading towards the Main House.

 

‘ _ Should I say something _ ?’ Shisui wondered idly, ‘ _ Nah. Aunt Mikoto would never forgive me if I got in the way of her future Uzumaki-Uchiha grandkids.’ _

 

The messy-haired teen was running late for a date- hey, someone had to cheer the girls up, after news got around that Itachi was taken- so he opted not to follow her now. He still had plenty of ammo from her previous heist to tease Itachi with, after all. 

 

When Naruto reached the massive house near the back of the Compound, she took a moment to pause and admire the grandeur of the two-story, traditional style, cream-walled and blue-tiled home.

 

_ ‘Okay, so Sasuke’s still a teme,’ _ Naruto decided, ‘ _ But his arrogance makes so much more sense now.’ _

 

It didn’t excuse him, of course. The blonde suspected that both of her friends lived in equally ornate homes, and they didn’t act like the youngest Uchiha did. Shino based his pride on his intellect and budding shinobi skill, while Hinata eschewed humbleness and skipped straight into an inferiority complex.

 

Sasuke’s home had a private courtyard surrounding the house, with another wall that Naruto had to tree-walk over. When she landed on the other side, she saw freshly-cut grass, a pebbled walkway, and a small torii leading to the backyard. The Uzumaki was even willing to bet that the Uchiha’s had a koi fish pond back there. Ignoring the possibility, Naruto slowly crept closer towards the eastern side of the house, scanned the wall for opened windows, and slowly pumped chakra towards her feet.

 

_ ‘Today’s my lucky day,’ _ Naruto was delighted to find that the sole open window led into Sasuke’s room, ‘ _ Teme’s room is very ordered; his mother probably cleans it. The clothes are all folded neatly, and his underwear is… aha! Pinstriped boxers in the bottom drawer, and ooh, does that one have polka dots? What’s the most embarrassing one for me to return to Ino? _ ’ 

 

As Naruto Uzumaki began to dig through her classmate’s underwear drawer, she was unaware of the dark-haired woman approaching the room. Mikoto was a Jounin-level kunoichi that had specialized in genjutsu, which led to her developing sensor nin abilities. She had been chopping vegetables in the kitchen, when a vaguely familiar chakra made itself present in her baby’s room.

 

‘ _ Thank Kami that Sasuke is at Nori’s house today,’  _ Mikoto armed herself with a kunai, and silently headed towards her son’s room. She could hear the whisper-thin shuffles of cloth being moved, and wondered at the aim of a shinobi that went through a pubescent child’s drawers. ‘ _ Eliminating the Head’s youngest child with a contact skin-based poison, or maybe a pedophile? _ ’

 

The door’s hinges were well-oiled, so the intruder didn’t look over as Mikoto stepped into the room. Her head did jerk over though, when Mikoto abruptly gasped. “Naruto!”

 

“Er-bleh-eek!” Mikoto’s extensive experience with Kushina-speak translated this to ‘this isn’t what it looks like’, ‘it’s not my fault’, and ‘blame Minato’! Though since Naruto was crouched on the floor, with a pair of what appeared to be Sasuke’s undergarments in her hands, perhaps this Uzumaki found another boy to blame everything on.

 

The Uchiha Matriarch inwardly squeed. ‘ _ Kushina’s daughter has a crush on my son! _ ’

 

Naruto didn’t bother to stick around and question why Sasuke’s mother was standing there, beaming scarily at her, when she could escape instead. She wasn’t quite ready to throw herself out of the second floor window- her tree-walking wasn’t  _ that _ good- but she could slip around the woman too.

 

And that was what Naruto chose to do. Mikoto Uchiha made no attempt to catch her, as the blonde girl grabbed a random pair of boxers, skid around her body, and ran down the hallway. Sasuke’s room was at the very back of the hallway, so the blonde passed the Master Room, Itachi’s bedroom, a guest room, and two closets, in her bid for the stairs. 

 

_ ‘Almost there,’  _ Naruto’s body flooded itself with adrenaline. She took a brief peek back to see that Mikoto wasn’t chasing her.  _ ‘I only need to- aahhh!’   _

 

The body was tall. And warm. And wet. 

 

And fell over backwards when the blonde girl’s weight fully unbalanced his body. 

 

When Naruto regained her sense of self a moment later, she peeked up and was met with an unsmiling face. Her nose detected a sharp peppermint scent that prickled something at the edge of her memory. Ink-toned eyes stared down at her, with a familiarity and warmth that the Uzumaki was entirely unaware of, as she noticed the pale, wiry arms holding her to the teen’s body. Which naturally drew her attention to the droplets of water on his torso, wherein Naruto realized that she was sprawled across Sasuke’s mostly-naked older brother.

 

“Eep!” Sasuke’s mostly-naked older brother kindly did not say anything, as Naruto shoved her body back, and scrabbled to her feet, even though she was pretty sure that she had kicked his stomach. “I’m sorry!”

 

Then, she slid around him, and continued running out of the house. Even with her near-overwhelming agitation over being caught, and the physical stresses of running, Naruto spared a thought to how she must have looked stealing underwear from the youngest Uchiha son. Sasuke’s mother and his (mostly-naked) older brother must think she was crazy.

 

And since the mostly-naked part of ‘mostly-naked older brother’ had yet to leave her head, Naruto probably was.

 

…

 

For the next few days, Naruto ducked her head down and flushed Hinata-red whenever an Uchiha passed her by. Shino and Hinata both asked her what had made her so spooked, but the blonde refused to say anything, lest they be implicated in the crime. It was only after she was confident that the KMPF wouldn’t be after her, that she beckoned Ino to a secluded tree.

 

“Here,” Naruto said shortly, almost shoving the blue-and-white checkered boxers into a stunned Ino’s hands, “Sasuke’s underwear. They have his name on the label. Can I have the jutsu now?”

 

“Whoa,” the platinum-blonde girl breathed, gently straightening the garment, “I can’t believe you actually stole one of Sasuke’s boxers.”

 

“Neither can I,” the Uzumaki replied, “Let’s never, ever,  _ ever  _ mention this again.” 

 

“Alright,” Ino replied, gleefully imagining Forehead’s face when the Yamanaka triumphantly displayed her prize, “You held up your end of the deal, dobe. I’ll bring the scroll over to school tomorrow.”

 

‘ _ After everything I had to do, you’d better,’  _ Naruto thought, recalling her near-disastrous foray into Uchiha grounds. Then she remembered Sasuke’s (mostly naked) older brother, and blushed. Again.

 

x

 

The remainder of the day when Naruto Uzumaki was found rifling through Sasuke Uchiha’s underwear was a strange one for the Uchiha household.

 

Mikoto Uchiha was in absolute raptures. From her perspective, Kushina’s daughter had just blatantly proved that she had a crush on her baby. 

 

“Sasuke and Naruto don’t seem to get along at school, Okaa-san,” Itachi corrected softly, “I don’t think that she would be one of his fangirls.”

 

His younger brother agreed with this. Sasuke didn’t know what had made his mother so excited or his aniki so flustered, but he definitely noticed the Uzumaki mention.

 

“There’s _ no way _ that the dobe likes me,” Sasuke exclaimed, missing his elder brother’s chiding glance, “I mean, she’s annoying and weird, but at least she doesn’t follow me around and giggle over everything like the other girls.” 

 

That hadn’t done much to deter their mother’s enthusiasm. Her focus now moved to Itachi, who would now doubtlessly have to marry the blonde, as Naruto had so clearly tarnished his purity, and must take responsibility for her actions.

 

“It sounded like an honest mistake by Naruto, and one that could hardly be punished on a child,” pointed out Fugaku, to whom the entire incident had been explained. “And haven’t some of the clan’s girls been more aggressive for Itachi’s attentions?”

 

“Yes, but none of _ those _ actions were taken by Kushina’s daughter,” Mikoto said firmly, “Don’t you care about our son’s reputation, Fugaku?”

 

Itachi’s contribution was to determinedly pretend that his parents weren’t arguing over his potential loss of innocence or lack thereof to a pint-sized blonde.

 

These discussions did have one unexpected side benefit though. Fugaku Uchiha was too busy keeping his wife from nearly skipping to the Sandaime and demanding a drawn-kunai wedding, to make much progress on the coup d’etat. Between this temporary reprieve, and the slew of notes from Naruto, Itachi was almost glad for the break-in.

 

_ ‘Since you are the all-seeing, all-knowing guardian of my life, I’m sure that you already have a basic idea of what happened. Turns out that my second foray into criminality didn’t turn out any better than my first, and that probably has something to do with all of the shinobi clans that I pick as targets. The mother of my target- yes, I was stealing Sasuke’s boxers, and no, I do not like him at all- found me a few minutes after I got into his room. I had to run out of the compound, after bumping into Sasuke’s older brother, and will probably be picked up by the KMPF any minute now. You’ll still write to me, if I was in prison, won’t you?’ _

 

 _‘If I said no, would you stop breaking and entering into other people’s homes?_ _I’ll be your friend anyway, but there are rules limiting messages to felons- which, I remind you, applies to theft of noble clan property! First, grocery lists, and now, your classmate’s underwear… do you have a strange kleptomania that you would like to admit to? Also, I believe you left something behind in your grand escape from the Uchiha Compound._ ’

 

_ ‘My hat! Well, technically Hinata’s older cousin’s hat, which I forgot to get permission to borrow. Thanks for returning it to me. Hinata says that her cousin is an asshole- she says that he’s ‘difficult’, which means asshole in Hinata-speak- so I don’t know what he would have done if he learned that I lost it. I only broke into those houses for important information! Besides, you should remember all that time you spent skulking inside of my apartment and following me to school. I sniff the air every day now, and I never sense an additional person in my apartment. Why is that?’ _

 

_ ‘Your ANBU guard was disbanded after you entered your third year of the Academy. At that point, the Sandaime decided that your safety could be assured within the village, without additional oversight. Shame that you began your criminal career shortly afterwards. As for my breaking and entering, it was sanctioned by the Hokage, and therefore, entirely legal. By the way, you don’t need to worry about the KMPF knocking down your door and dragging you away in the dead of night. One of my associates within the clan told me that the only crime pinned to you is the vandalism of the Academy teacher’s lounge.’ _

 

x

 

It was an established certainty of Itachi Uchiha’s life that as soon as he avoided one set of embarrassing circumstances, he would be introduced to another. Specifically by his cousin, Shisui, who didn’t even wait until they were outside of the village gates before beginning his interrogation.

 

“So I caught your little girlfriend sneaking into the Compound yesterday,” Shisui began, pitching his voice far enough to catch the attention of the gate guards. Predictably, Izumo and Kotetsu swung their heads in his direction. “And since you’re very predictable, and in love with your own schedule, I’m guessing that you were showering at the time?”

 

_ ‘Of all the days for Kakashi to be assigned to a solo mission, _ ’ Itachi mourned, as Miroku’s brown eyes widened and Yugao’s steps momentarily faltered. ‘ _ He wouldn’t have let this unprofessionalism stand. _ ’

 

“She’s not my girlfriend,” was Itachi’s dry response, because the older teen had a tendency to break apart anything that wasn’t a direct denial.

 

“I know Cousin Kumiro was shocked when Aunt Mikoto mentioned seeing her draped over your wet and shirtless body,” the messy-haired teen merrily added, “The old Aunties were scandalized, of course, even though Aunt Mikoto swore that you only took those liberties since you two were getting married. Or maybe she was the one taking liberties? I forget which one of you was blamed.”

 

“Wait, wait, wait!” Miroku shouted, half-turning around to stare at Itachi, while walking backwards down the path, “What are you talking about?!”

 

“Itachi’s new girlfriend,” Shisui responded, his mischievous smile overlooked in favor of the other two shinobi staring at Itachi. The younger Uchiha purposefully kept his eyes to the road. He refused to show his discomfort, and resolved to withdraw himself from this conversation.

 

“When did  _ Itachi  _ get a  _ girlfriend _ ?” Miroku demanded, “How did I not know about this?”

 

“Well, Itachi’s been courting his girl in secret,” Shisui explained, “Love letters, midnight rendezvous in forbidden clan compounds, secret gifts, the works.”

 

“But- but-  _ Itachi _ ?! Having a girlfriend?” the brunette waved his hands in the teen’s direction, as though to emphasize his point, “What type of a girl catches the perfect Uchiha prodigy’s attention?”

 

Shisui’s smile was cold. “The blonde-haired, blue-eyed, clan-born ninjutsu prodigies, naturally.”

 

“I’m not trying to be rude about it,” Miroku quickly back-pedalled, “But you have to admit that our youngest teammate is… er, socially selective?”

 

“Fair enough,” the messy-haired Uchiha allowed, his posture relaxing. “In this case, Itachi essentially tailed her for days before he made the first move. He wanted to be confident of her personality, you see, and Aunt Mikoto and I both think that his decision was perfect. She’s clever, ambitious, friendly, and strong,  _ and _ she’s totally indifferent to the fact that he’s the Uchiha Heir. I can’t imagine a better girlfriend for Itachi.”

 

‘ _ Other than the fact that she’s  _ not _ my girlfriend,’  _ Itachi thought, exasperated but also touched, _ ‘Shisui’s description for Naruto was spot-on. The true worth of my friendship with her was beyond anything that I could have imagined when I wrote that first note.’ _

 

“You’ve praised her a lot, but I don’t think any woman can match all of those criteria and not be widely known throughout the village,” Miroku said, doubtfully, “Not that any woman that catches Itachi’s attention wouldn’t be amazing, but I would have heard of her before now, wouldn’t I?”

 

“Her family decided to keep her fairly low-key,” Shisui rebuffed, “Aunt Mikoto had a personal connection with the girl’s mother, actually, and that’s one of the reasons that she’s so excited for them. And when Itachi met her, he naturally decided to keep his courting secret. Otherwise, he would have a lot more competition for her heart, wouldn’t he?”

 

“Now I’m starting to think that no one would be capable of winning her over, even our resident child genius!” Miroku claimed, laughing.

 

“Well, if anyone is capable of it, then I’m sure that it would be Itachi,” Yugao finally interjected, amused. The kenjutsu specialist had kept quiet, in order to gather more clues from her companion’s body language. Now, she felt that she had gathered enough information to formulate a conclusion.

 

Yugao had a pretty good idea of who Shisui was referring to. The kunoichi had heard from her friend, Hana Inuzuka- who had heard from her mother, who had heard from Shibi Aburame, who had heard from Hiashi Hyuuga, who had seen for himself- that the Uchiha heir was courting the jinchuuriki. The female ANBU had originally doubted the claim, but Shisui’s voice was filled with genuine conviction and Itachi’s body language suggested that his feelings were, at minimum, affectionate.

 

_ ‘The clan-born aspect and claim of being a ninjutsu prodigy are new,’  _ the woman considered, ‘ _ And I didn’t know that Mikoto Uchiha was close to one of the jinchuuriki’s parents, but the rest of the information fits. _ ’

 

The Uchiha Clan had been ascending recently, with Shisui and Itachi’s early and public successes, and a possible alliance with a jinchuuriki would only add to this power. They were also mired in controversy, since some idiots were convinced that the Uchiha were behind the Kyuubi attack, but those rumors were obviously false. The Sandaime wouldn’t have allowed a courtship to progress otherwise.

 

After this mission was over, Yugao would have to make a visit to her mother. She loved the woman, but her mother was a civilian gossip of the worst sort. And the purple-haired woman would have to strongly emphasize why it would be in the family’s best interest not to malign the ascendant founding clan. 

 

_ ‘Then I can tell Hana that the rumors were right!’  _ Yugao mentally giggled, ‘ _ Tall, dark, and reserved Itachi with the petite, bright, and bubbly Naruto? And exchanging secret love letters? That’s so cute!’ _

 

x

 

_ ‘I have the best damn friends in the world, _ ’ Naruto reflected, sitting cross-legged on her bed. On her right was Shino, who had placed a few of his kikachu on her arm, to monitor her chakra levels. On her left was Hinata, whose pulsating veins and dilated pupils, signified an active Byakugan focused on her chakra network. 

 

“Are y-you sure about th-this?” Hinata asked, concern drawing away from the ferocity of her dojutsu, “You d-don’t have to p-prove a-anything, Naruto-chan.”

 

“I need to do this, Hinata-chan,” the blonde replied, reaching out and taking one of the Hyuuga’s hands in her own. She predictably blushed a fierce red, which Naruto politely ignored. After her own experience with Sasuke’s (mostly naked) older brother, she had a better idea of why Hinata acted that way. The Uzumaki would have to talk to her best female friend about this, but not until she saw this Yamanaka hypothesis through.

 

“Then we’ll support you through it,” Shino promised, though his tone was resigned at best. Not only did he doubt her relation to Ino, but the boy was convinced that if they _ were _ related, then the Yamanaka clan had done her a disservice by not acknowledging her in all of these years. 

 

“If one of their members had a child, then they would know,” the Aburame insisted stubbornly, “And if you were that child, and they chose to ignore you, then their actions were ill-mannered and abhorrent. They would not deserve you.”

 

Naruto tried not to think about that either. She had gotten very good at ignoring things that she didn’t want to face these days.

 

“Thanks, guys,” the blonde squeezed Hinata’s hand once, and then did the same for Shino. Then her hands slowly formed the seals of the Mind Body Inner Mirrors of Reflection technique. Mi, Tatsu, Saru, Ne, Ushi- her chakra built up, anticipatorily swirling for a release- _ Tori _ .

 

“Mind Body Jutsu: Inner Mirrors of Reflection,” Naruto murmured, before her world went dark.

 

She was floating, cold and warm, strong and weak, scared and calm, into an inky pool of shadows. Her entire mind seemed encased in a box of cotton fluff, the lazy drawl of her thoughts became mere wisps outside of her grasp. Naruto’s body felt like it was dozing, but she was awake and aware, and her body was submerged in thick, cloying molasses. The blonde was falling into a stupor, when her body was suddenly tugged forcefully down to the ground. There was the recoil of her feet hitting solid ground, her body held still by forces beyond her control, when Naruto’s eyes caught a mirror.

 

She stepped closer, as her limbs regained control of themselves, and looked into its surface. 

 

A petite girl with tanned skin, whiskered cheeks, and neon yellow hair stared back. It was a perfect copy, but for the pupiless crimson irises held in eye sockets of pure black. Naruto raised one trembling hand to the mirror, and her mirror-image copied the action. Then the mirror-imaged put down her arm, and a petite girl stepped out of the glass.

 

Naruto stumbled back. “ _ Who are you? _ ”

 

The mirror image’s face broke into a sharp-toothed smile. 

 

“Isn’t that obvious?” Even her voice was a perfect mimicry of her own, “I’m Naruto Uzumaki.”

 

x


	7. Chapter 7

x

 

_ A petite girl with tanned skin, whiskered cheeks, and neon yellow hair stared back. It was a perfect copy, but for the pupiless crimson irises held in eye sockets of pure black. Naruto raised one trembling hand to the mirror, and her mirror-image copied the action. Then the mirror-imaged put down her arm, and a petite girl stepped out of the glass. _

 

_ Naruto stumbled back. “Who are you?” _

 

_ The mirror image’s face broke into a sharp-toothed smile.  _

 

_ “Isn’t that obvious?” Even her voice was a perfect mimicry of her own, “I’m Naruto Uzumaki.” _

 

…

 

Naruto’s body was coiled in tension as her mirror-image began to move. Rather than step closer, the red-eyed spirit languidly encircled her body, forcing the other girl to follow her movements lest the spirit move out of sight. There was an oppressive silence as rich sapphire met iridescent crimson, and neither blonde spoke.

 

“You,” the uncanny similarity of the spirit’s tone made her counterpart shiver, “Are a very  _ stupid  _ girl.”

 

“And one that doesn’t like herself much, huh?” Naruto quipped, tapping the spot besides her right eye, “Red eyes. Very evil. Must clash terribly with all of that orange.”

 

The spirit smiled, and Naruto wondered if she looked equally silly when her whisker marks bunched up like that. “I find that it adds character.”

 

“I prefer blue myself,” the Uzumaki hurriedly took a step back, as the spirit drew closer. “ _ What _ are you?”

 

“Didn’t I already answer that?” the spirit jumped forward, and Naruto threw her body to the side. The darkness below her feet felt entirely solid, as her body tumbled into a crouch, and then rose. She looked warily at the spirit, that hadn’t move to attack when she was down. “I’m _ you _ . And more.”

 

Under the Uzumaki’s stunned gaze, four pale-gold, glowing chains burst out of the spirit’s body and rushed towards her. She barely dodged the first one, when the second slapped her aside, and the remainder fastened her arms to her body. The chains slunk around her-  _ solid, burning, unyielding _ \- and the blades lay ominously against her collarbone, visible against the shared pale-gold hue of her skin. Naruto screamed.

 

There was a single, high-pitched shriek of terror, before the sound tapered off. And then silence. No echo. No return. Naruto was left with pools of darkness, dim lighting, and the iridescent crimson eyes of her merciless mirror-image.

 

“What are these?” the blonde demanded, each word extending her vocal box to the warm tongue of the blade, “What are you?!”

 

“Come on now,” the spirit frowned, “I expected better from myself. Tell me your suspicions, and I will give you a true answer. We’ve never liked to lie.”

 

_ ‘She’s holding me captive, and wants to play mind games,’ _ Naruto thought, terrified, ‘ _ Her chains can kill me at any moment… _ ’ 

 

“They can, but I won’t do so,” her mirror-image admitted, her smile returning at the obvious horror in those blue eyes, “You deserve so much more than a quick, painless death, Naruto. And yes, I can read your thoughts. They’re available to anyone in your mental scape, and thus, open to me.”  

 

“You said that you’re me,” Naruto replied, voice trembling. Her best recourse was to humor the spirit, until Shino and Hinata could find an adult to save her from this mess. As soon as the thought formed, she saw the mirror-image’s mouth curl into an even less benevolent expression. “The Yamanaka jutsu was supposed to help me reflect on my sense of self. And, if it worked, then you’re my inner reflection. But you also said that you’re more...” 

 

“I am,” the spirit cheerfully replied, her wary crimson eyes oddly contrasting with the childishly round face and bright blonde bangs. “Let me tell you a few things about the Yamanaka jutsu that our selfish, vapid classmate couldn’t be bothered to say. It’s supposed to show you the parts of your personality and experience that you’ve naturally suppressed, in order to come to grips with it and prevent the break off of a separate consciousness. I’m sure you can understand why.”

 

“So it doesn’t take over their bodies,” the Uzumaki’s voice grew steadier, though her entire body turned cold. The Mind-Body switch was the basis of most of the Yamanaka jutsus; that was common knowledge, even to the civilians of Konoha. For her to see this, the spirit must have splintered…

 

“I’m more than just a splinter, thank you,” the mirror-image’s voice became positively glacial. It could have matched the icy pit forming in Naruto’s stomach. “We’ve lived a harder life than that spoiled little clan princess, Ino, haven’t we? I represent everything that we’ve gone through; the life that you’re so happy to ignore! All those times they shunned a child barely old enough to walk or speak! Every ugly thought, every moment of anger, every wish that we made for someone to give a damn about us!”

 

Her iridescent crimson eyes flashed, and the darkness broke around her. But Naruto cringed back against her burning chains, desperately wanting to close her eyes, as the world around her broke into screens. Memories. Ugly, bitter, unhappy, sad. And her body refused to close her eyes.

 

_ Skinny arms wrapped around the thin, orphanage-issued pillow. Lightning crackling outside. Scared and crying, but none of the matrons came. They would never come. _

 

_ A spring festival, and the sense of good cheer and beginnings in the air. No one would smile at her, but they didn’t glare either. A fistful of money from the Old Man. A pretty fox mask being thrown at her head. The shopkeeper’s angry jeer, and the averted faces of the ninja around him. She fled. _

 

_ Her first day of school. So excited that she had arrived almost an hour early. Introducing herself to the class, but dismissed to her seat before she could even finish. An indifferent instructor and children that grew scornful of the child that was too stupid, and too slow, and too useless to accomplish anything. _

 

_ Failure. Exam after exam after exam. Trying so hard, but nobody cared. Nobody ever did. A fit of anger inspiring paint thrown at the sensei’s face. A moment of attention- and she wanted it so much, it physically hurt- that instigated a second, and then a third. The burst of joy turning into ash in her mouth when she realized that it changed nothing. _

 

_ A note. More notes, in a slanted, graceful script that answered her questions, and encouraged her to practice further. Support and affection to a child that had been starved of either. Then anxious whispers in the night of hidden identities. Frustration that her first friend may have been ashamed of her warring with the guilt of suspicion. Her regret voicing the thought that she wasn’t worthy of the ANBU’s kindness. _

 

“Stop it,” her voice shook, and then escalated into a shriek, “I don’t want to see this!  _ Turn them off! _ ”

 

“This is our life,” the spirit’s voice purred, “You wonder why I have so much power? It’s because I’ve fed on every negative part of our lives that you’ve pushed down. I’m filled with all of the hatred and pain that we’ve suffered, and it made me strong. And all it did was make you weak. You’re crying.” 

 

It wasn’t until the mirror-image said this, that Naruto became aware of the warm tears running down her cheeks. The screens thankfully flickered off, but their damage was done. The onslaught of memories caused her breath to come out in strangled gasps, as though she had just run for hours. 

 

“Why?” Naruto managed, “Why are you doing this to me?”

 

The spirit stepped forward, and her features calmed down into an expression of serenity. The brief upturn of her lips could even suggest a hint of compassion. Naruto shuddered when her small hand rose up to cup her cheek, almost kindly. The iridescent crimson eyes glittered.

 

“I need you to remember,” the spirit answered sympathetically, “They hurt us, Naruto, but you’re too weak to hurt them back. But I’m not. I’ll make them suffer for everything they’ve done to us.”

 

This caused the Uzumaki to stir. “You can’t,” she croaked, “I won’t let you.”

 

Her mirror-image stepped back, and Naruto saw her cupid-bow lips turn down. “I’m doing this for us,” the spirit insisted, “For the little girl that would have given away the world for a single kind word.”

 

And, despite not being able to explain it, the blonde somehow knew that her counterpart was being entirely honest, that she genuinely believed herself to be in the right. “And what will you do to me?”

 

“You’ll stay here,” the spirit assured, “Safe from people that will only want to hurt you.”

 

“And Shino? Hinata? The Old Man and the folks at Ichiraku?” Naruto demanded, “My ANBU?”

 

“Silly girl,” her counterpart’s voice was almost affectionate, “They may be kind to you now, but they’ll turn on us soon. Everyone does. I’m the only one that you can trust. I’ll never hurt you.”

 

Naruto closed her eyes, acknowledging- for a heartbeat- that the potential of her words were true. Hadn’t she doubted the sincerity of Shino’s friendship at the beginning? Didn’t the impetus to seek her ANBU’s identity come from her doubt that he truly cared? The anger, hurt, and frustration of the memories that her counterpart had shown filled her body, but then rich blue eyes opened. 

 

“They’re my friends,” Naruto’s voice was soft, but determined, “And I’ll never let you hurt them.”

 

Iridescent crimson eyes flashed, and an ugly sneer crossed the bewhiskered girl’s face. “And how do you intend to do that?”

 

The pale-gold chains tightened around her body, causing Naruto’s breath to catch, and the blades jangled threateningly. 

 

“The Adamantine Sealing Chains are our inheritance from our mother,” the spirit informed her, “An Uzumaki bloodline that was vaunted to hold down beings as powerful as the Bijuu. If you weren’t so busy chasing after the Yamanaka parent that we don’t have, then maybe you would know this.”

 

“Maybe I would,” Naruto agreed, because even in her fear, there was a sense of wonder at inheriting a bloodline from her mother, “But if you’re every bad thing about me… then you must have terrible chakra control.”

 

Then the energy that she had been building up to this point- a painful pressure pulsating under her skin- overflowed, and ruptured through her skin to the chains holding her down. There was a struggle between violent-tinted blue and silver-tinted gold, but Naruto couldn’t see this as she screamed.  _ Pain. Pain. Pain.  _ So much, that her skin rippled and tore, her blood burned hotter than fire, and bright spots blotted out her sight. So much, that Naruto thought she would prefer death.

 

_ …  _

 

_ “The Hyuuga’s don’t have many defensive moves tailored to their taijutsu,” Hinata had explained, under the warm spring sun, as their ankles slipped into the cold lake, “We do have the Kaiten though. It’s a full-body shield that can disrupt the chakra of other jutsus, by expelling a continuous stream of chakra from every tenketsu point in the body.” _

 

_ “Why the tenketsu points?” Shino wanted to know, “It would make the attack less costly, of course, but can’t the chakra be expelled from any point in the body?” _

 

_ Hinata’s pearlescent eyes widened in alarm, and she rapidly shook her head. “No! Chakra should only be released through the tenketsu points of the body! Or else it’ll rip through the muscles and nerves as it tries to get through. That would cause irreparable damage to the body!” _

 

_ …  _

 

It hurt, but more importantly, it worked. The chains were disrupted, and Naruto was free. Her regenerative abilities kicked in rapidly, even more effective within the mindscape, as tendons repaired themselves and the blood flow became sluggish. Her mirror-image looked appalled.

 

“You said that there was a little girl that would have given the world away for a single kind word,” Naruto’s body swayed, as she tried to get a handle on the pain wracking through her body. Regardless, there was a triumphant smile on her face. “I guess that little girl never really grew up.”

 

“Foolish, stupid, reckless child,” the crimson eyes narrowed, “You would hurt yourself for the hand that would slap you away instead?”

 

“You talk too much,” was Naruto’s reply, because her vision was still a bit too blurry for her own good.

 

There was a snarl, and white-gold chains burst out of the other girl’s back once again. They dove forward, but the Uzumaki refused to move as they pierced her body. A second later, and the body crumbled down into tens of thousands of tiny kikaichu bugs, that flew towards her counterpart.

 

_ ‘This is my mind,’  _ Naruto thought fiercely, as the crimson-eyed girl’s wave caused the kikaichu to be consumed in a curtain of fire, ‘ _ And you’re not welcome here! _ ’

 

A wave of water met the curtain of fire, and steam obscured the dim lighting around her. This had come down to a battle of wills, and Naruto was determined to win.

 

x

 

Shisui had been the first one to detect the ambush.

 

“Move!” he shouted, and Itachi angled his jump to take him to a tree branch several meters to the left, because he trusted that voice without question. A moment later, a water cannon blasted through the spot that he was about to land.

 

The Uchiha calmly perched on his tree branch, as his sensor ability expanded to assimilate the given information. Shisui and Yugao had dodged to the right, but a tense Miroku was to his direct left. This brought their ANBU team into a pincer formation against the six- five male, one female- Kiri ninja landing in the clearing. Itachi’s ink-toned eyes blinked once, and the spinning tomoe of a fully-matured Sharingan appeared.

 

_ ‘There are two ninja missing,’  _ was Itachi’s first thought, before he released his chakra, and fell below the tanto nearly striking at his head. One chakra-laden foot against the bark propelled him back up, and the Uchiha fell into the rapidstrike movement of a Jounin-level taijutsu match.    

 

_ ‘Ninjutsu specialist, _ ’ was his second thought, as the man tried to jump away, but the Uchiha followed closely behind, and refused to allow him an advantage. His eyes began to analyze the movements and his hands gracefully parried each strike, but Itachi’s attention was on his sensor ability, to discern where the creator of the water Bunshin had hidden.

 

‘ _ Why are they risking the treaty? _ ’ was this third thought, as he nearly forced himself through the watery body, and across seven trees in two jumps. Itachi’s arm jutted forward, and the warm, thick, familiar copper scent of blood assaulted his nose. Stomach wounds were never instantly fatal, so the dark-haired teen had to jump backwards, and avoid a furious rain of kunai from the man’s partner.

 

“What are you doing here?” Yugao shouted furiously, one hand forming hand seals, while the other used her katana to hold back two of the male nin, “Our villages have a Kami-damned treaty!”

 

“No problem to us, if you’re dead,” one of the nin stated, “Kiri doesn’t have a Sharingan after all.” A shriek of pain then, as Yugao spit out a beach ball sized ball of fire directly to his face. 

 

_ ‘Suggesting that they do have a Byakugan? _ ’ Itachi mused, sending a human-sized Great Fireball no Jutsu to the kunai-happy Kiri nin across him. 

 

Dammit, this was one of the worst times for an ambush! They were half a day of travel away from the Land of Fire borders, there mission had just recently been completed, and Itachi’s body couldn’t handle a second soldier pill to replenish his quarter-filled reserves. Once again, the teen was forced to deal with the frustration of completing high-level missions on a fourteen-year-old’s reserves.

 

_ ‘At least that fireball took one of them out,’ _ Itachi acknowledged, his regret carefully filed below the forced detachment of battle. 

 

The next seventeen minutes left the dark-haired teen insensate, as he fell into the patterns of battle. A thin shuriken cut on his left thigh, a water whiplash on his arm, a handful of bruises, a crack to on one of his ribs, and yet, Itachi simply kept on moving. Genjutsu required minimal chakra, and his Sharingan enhanced the scope of visual illusions, as the the Kiri ninja, who was foolish enough to look an Uchiha in the eye, was forced to find out.

 

Vines splaying him below a red sky, red ants running across his body, his skin shrivelling under the relentless heat and strips of flesh torn away to feed the crows, and Itachi’s blade to his throat became a mercy. Then the Uchiha drew back, coiled his chakra in, and released another pulse to the field.

 

Eight ninja, of mostly Chuunin level had come in. Five of them were dead, one Jounin-level ninja was fighting Yugao, and another one was surrounded by the dozen after-images of Shisui’s Body Flicker. The final one was being matched, katon jutsu against suiton jutsu, by Miroku, on the forest floor.

 

Itachi’s hands quickly snapped through the first futon jutsu that he had ever learned, and the only jutsu that he had ever gifted Naruto with. He may not have the blonde’s chakra reserves or powerful wind affinity, but his Gale Palm was enough to triple the size of Miroku’s next katon jutsu. The brunette’s opponent wore goggles, but the expression on his face turned slack as the fiery wall of chakra threw his body back and led to his death. 

 

Itachi averted his eyes. The rancid smell of burnt flesh had always sickened him.

 

Miroku turned to him, with a relieved look. “Looks like we made it through.”

 

The dark-haired teen would have replied, but his Sharingan was still active, and the barest flicker of his consciousness drew his attention to one of the dead bodies. His first opponent, the water ninjutsu user with the deadly stomach wound, had thrown a kunai, and, as Itachi’s arm automatically rose to deflect it, he noticed that it hadn’t been aimed at him.

 

“Mir-” Itachi’s voice soundlessly screamed, as the man he thought he’d killed, the man that he was supposed to kill, threw a kunai that skewered through Miroku’s neck. His cheerful, flirtatious, and quick-witted teammate, whose eyes opened wide in a moment of surprise, and then glazed over.

 

Dead. Miroku was dead. Because he left an enemy alive.

 

“Itachi!” Shisui’s voice made him look up again, and Itachi didn’t know- couldn’t know- that his appearance had suddenly changed. The three tomoe in his crimson eyes had spun and merged and separated, as three spiralling curves formed around a black pupil. Tears of blood fell soundlessly from his eyes, the entire world falling into sharp clarity, before chakra exhaustion finally took him.

 

As the Uchiha heir slumped down in exhaustion, he didn’t feel his cousin’s arms catching his falling body or hear Yugao’s equally worried shout of his name.

 

Miroku was dead.

 

x

 

Inoichi Yamanaka didn’t even bother to give his cringing daughter a second look, as he accepted the hastily-made sandwich from his wife, and rushed back to the hospital. Despite the fact that he had already given her a thorough reaming for the sheer and utter  _ stupidity _ of giving out a clan technique- much less for another child’s private clothing- Inoichi was still furious. Ino’s selfish and thoughtless actions had caused a massive clusterfuck that was known to almost every shinobi clan in the village.

 

The Nara and Akimichi clans knew, of course, due to the treaty that required Inoichi to share any potential political mishaps with the allied families. Two of the other noble clans, Aburame and Hyuuga, were informed, due to their heirs involvement in the matter. The Uchiha Clan, having been an inadvertent party to that disastrous bet, were informed of the events. And if the Inuzuka weren’t aware by now, then they certainly would be within a matter of days, with the gossip involved.

 

Inoichi had been forced to convene an emergency Yamanaka Council, after his initial prognostic of the Uzumaki, and his kinsman were understandably angry. Their clan didn’t have bloodline-specific abilities, but had gained some level of prominence through techniques that they had developed through laborious and deadly trial-and-error. Since anyone could steal their hard work, they put many mental and physical failsafes on their scrolls, and impressed countless warnings on their shinobi to keep those jutsu secret. A warning that was disregarded by the heiress of the clan, in order to barter one of their precious techniques in exchange for an illegal act. 

 

Even members of the clan that despised the jinchuuriki, were calling for Ino to be removed from the heiress position for her decision. Inoichi had managed to prevent that- barely- but knew that his daughter would have to be given a severe punishment. The older Yamanaka had no idea what convinced her to trade a Yamanaka jutsu for a pair of Sasuke Uchiha’s boxers.  

 

A Yamanaka jutsu that had put the Kyuubi jinchuuriki in a coma.

 

The Sandaime’s fury could have put the most irate, traditional Yamanaka Elder to shame. The venerable man had managed to hold his expression during the children’s explanations- the Aburame’s pragmatic, but worried summary and the Hyuuga’s stuttering, but forceful answers- but the adults didn’t receive that allowance. Everyone had been at fault. Hiashi and Shibi were told to instruct their heirs on the dangers of using unknown clan jutsu, Fugaku had been asked why the break-in wasn’t reported, and Inoichi had been ordered to scan the unconscious girl.

 

Had his Kage’s ire not been enough to shame him, the image of the tiny blonde laying pallid and still against the stark white bedsheets would have. Inoichi didn’t like looking at Naruto Uzumaki often. She was the picture-perfect copy of her father, and forced the Yamanaka Clan Head to recall the easy-going blonde genius of his Academy class. She spoke and moved like Kushina Uzumaki, and the blonde man was almost tempted to check his back for a ‘kick me’ sign. Inoichi never saw the Kyuubi, but he couldn’t see Naruto Uzumaki either.

 

“Have there been any changes to her vitals?” Inoichi asked, once against inserting the barest thread of chakra into her forehead, and receiving the same impression back. The Inner Mirrors of Reflection jutsu had taken, and there was nothing to be done, but allow it to run its course. Breaking it could shatter her mind, but Inoichi wondered if that was not the kinder path should the Uzumaki girl be facing her literal demon.

 

“No, sir,” the nurse’s reply was just as rote, because the Yamanaka had asked this many times before.

 

Withholding a sigh, Inoichi nodded, and took a seat beside the bed. He would spend another night here, in the hope that an opportunity would present itself to insert his own consciousness into the girl. This entire clusterfuck was a series of terrible news to him.

 

Well, except for the assurance that Mikoto Uchiha refused to press charges. Thank Kami that the girl Ino had tricked, was also being courted by the woman’s eldest son. 

 

x

 

_ ‘Because I want to be your friend.’ _

 

The wind howled and spun into a tornado that tossed all of the rock projectiles back. But then arrows were pressing down on her, and Naruto’s body melted into another puddle of water.

 

_ ‘You should know about your family… I copied the relevant passages down here, for you.’ _

 

Concentric rings of glowing pink energy pinned her counterpart’s leg to the floor. The crimson-eyed girl stumbled, and Naruto had the chance to raise a pillar of stone, that brought her away from the quicksand on the floor.

 

_ ‘L-let us train together, Naruto-chan!’  _

 

Nets of golden light, golems of lava, daggers of glass, and glowing chakra chains that were far more versatile than they had any right to be. Naruto could feel exhaustion press down on her, as the two blondes continued to mentally batter one another with no end. Her only saving grace was that the crimson-eyed spirit was also tiring.

 

_ ‘I can’t have a battle of attrition with her,’ _ the Uzumaki admitted, frustrated that her most powerful trait had been negated,  _ ‘We have access to the same amount of chakra, and I nearly crippled myself at the beginning of our fight.’ _

 

Her body was enfolded into the cloak of shadows, giving her a chance to pause and catch her breath. The mirror-image paused too, fingers twitching and crimson eyes warily tracking the darkness, as she momentarily rested. Her sweat-drenched blonde locks were pasted to a damp forehead, the pale-gold skin flushing dark pink in exhaustion. 

 

“You’re being foolish,” the uncanny voice rang out again, “Why are you fighting me? I’m doing this to protect us!”

 

“You just want to hurt everyone!” Her voice echoed from every corner of the room, because that was a lesson that Naruto had only needed to learn once, “You want to hurt my friends!”

 

“Because they’re only going to hurt us!” And under the fury within her voice, Naruto could hear hints of tears and pleas, “We can’t trust any of them!”

 

“ _ You _ can’t trust any of them,” Naruto retorted, “That doesn't mean that I don’t.”

 

“But you do,” her counterpart snapped, “If you trusted them, then I wouldn’t be here.  _ I  _ am _ you _ !”

 

That brought Naruto up short, because she was right. Her counterpart was bitter and ruthless, but that was because  _ Naruto _ had been bitter and ruthless. The mirror-image symbolized every ugly thought that  _ Naruto _ had, every moment of anger that  _ Naruto _ didn’t act on, and every unfulfilled wish that  _ Naruto  _ put her heart into. Her counterpart wanted to lash out at the world, because there was a vindictive child inside of her that was willing to trap another child’s clothes with poison ivy.

 

“But I didn’t,” Naruto whispered, “I didn’t do that.”

 

And if that vindictive child was there, then so was the little girl that would have given the world away for a single kind word.

 

“What are you doing?” the counterpart asked, as the Uzumaki showed herself again. Naruto merely smiled at her, before closing her eyes and concentrating. 

 

‘ _ I think your golden hair makes you look like a Yosei. _ ’

 

Freshly grown grass brushed ticklishly against her ankles as it spread in an ever-widening circle from her body. A brisk breeze whistled through the air, and a burbling creek appeared, with fragrant wildflowers dotting its banks. Ancient trees stood as giant sentinels against the backdrop of the sky. She could see swathes of clouds canvass above, and feel the warmth of the sunlight encompass her.

 

Naruto opened her eyes, and walked forward. The crimson-eyed girl refused to move.

 

“I’ll admit it’s pretty,” her mirror-image said mockingly, “But how do you plan to defeat me with it?”

 

“I didn’t make it to hurt you,” Naruto hesitantly raised a hand, and her counterpart grew utterly still when it lay on  _ her  _ cheek, this time, “I think that every Yosei deserves a woodland home of her own.”

 

Then Naruto took one final step, brought her arms up, and enveloped the crimson-eyed spirit in a hug.

 

x

 

Momochi Zabuza had nearly half-a-dozen bandages wrapped around his face, so he didn’t bother to prevent the scowl on his face as he trudged to the madman’s office. It was also his Kage’s office, which was fitting since Yagura was somehow both the absolute leader of Kirigakure and the greatest enemy Kiri’s bloodline clans had ever suffered from.

 

The jinchuuriki’s secretary was a squeaky little thing, and Zabuza was disinclined from listening to him regardless, because he simply refused to obey the orders of a Chuunin. Much less a rich, first caste, civvie brat that was probably only promoted because his father blamed the bloodline wielders for being unable to protect his business in the last war. The widely-named Demon of the Mist had no respect for those kind of people, and, if he was being entirely honest, little respect for his Kage either.

 

‘ _ I knew that Yuki brat was making me soft, _ ’ the Demon thought, considering the dark-haired, absurdly pretty boy-child that kept following him around. He had made the mistake of tossing the kid bread once, and somehow ended up with a (potentially useful) stalker in exchange. That his apprentice was a bloodline user exacerbated Zabuza’s initial dislike of the regime’s policies.  _ ‘Maybe Harusame had a point about leaving when I had the chance.’ _

 

They were in similar situations now, since both of their apprentices would be targeted under Yagura’s policies. Though Harusame had left with a fully-grown, Jounin-level apprentice, whereas Zabuza had to deal with a girly-looking ten-year-old boy, so he probably couldn’t pull off the same wandering trick. There were some sick bastards among the Kiri Hunter Nin, and Zabuza wouldn’t want to hand a kid like Haku over to them.

 

_ ‘And running leaves a cowardly taste to my mouth too,’  _ Zabuza admitted, acknowledging his prideful nature. There was a shadow beyond the wall of the Yondaime’s door, and the Demon of the Mist channelled his chakra to his eardrums, in order to hear them.

 

_ “Activated… successful attack… final stage of the eye.” _ Was Yagura’s voice always so deep?

 

_ ‘The fuck? _ ’ Zabuza thought, straightening up, as the shadow moved away, and the door swung open. Resisting the urge to reach for the Kubikiribocho, the tall man stepped into the office, and took it in.

 

There were only two people present, even though Zabuza could have sworn that he’d heard three heartbeats. Yagura was sitting behind his desk, of course, on a special chair designed to compensate for his miniscule height. There were still his youthful features, ash grey hair, and a single, stiched scar running down his cheek. The other man was new.

 

Zabuza’s first impression was the color white. The child- because he could hardly be older than fifteen years- had pure white hair, white bandages covering half of his face, and a high-collar white jacket over his body. It was fastened to his body by means of two thick belts, and were the only non-white color of his outfit. The sole other distinguishing feature were pale pink eyes that stared at him with the gaze of an experienced killer.

 

Even to a man who was no stranger to bloodshed, those ancient eyes on a youthful face, were strange, and the Demon of the Mist turned away. Instead, he hid his sneer, curled his chakra in, and forced himself to bow. “The mission was successful, Mizukage-sama.”

 

Mostly. Zabuza certainly couldn’t be blamed if Mangetsu’s annoying little brother managed to escape the purge of the Hozuki Clan. 

 

x


	8. Chapter 8

 

Hiruzen Sarutobi was a man that had been given many titles and honors throughout his life. He was the Professor, the God of Shinobi, and the Sandaime Hokage. He was amongst the first generation of ninja produced by Konohagakure, and the one that went on to lead the village through all three shinobi wars. He had been the student of both the Shodaime and Nidaime Hokage's, mastered every element, and personally taught the three Legendary Sannin. And yet, for all of that, there were few happier days in Hiruzen’s life than when he had passed on his hat to the one man that he was sure would surpass his own extensive reputation.

 

Then Minato had the nerve to go and blow himself up, rather than deal with the political headaches, endless paperwork, and village crises that Hiruzen had so gleefully passed off to him. The Sandaime Hokage acknowledged that the blonde man had no choice, but that was of little comfort when he was so swamped with work, that he was barely able to see his toddler grandson, much less the lonely blonde child that Minato had died for. 

 

The Dead Demon Consuming Seal was simply too complicated and experimental for anyone but a fuuinjutsu master to use, and Konoha only had four such masters to their credit. Of them, Jiraiya had not been present in the village, Homura no longer possessed the chakra capacity, and Kushina’s coils were irreparably damaged from the Kyuubi extraction. In the end, Minato had been pressed to a corner that forced him to make the sole choice available. The brave man had walked to his own death, with the expectation that the people he sacrificed himself for would honor his final wish.

 

A final wish that now laid still and silent on the hospital bed, as her mind receded to depths beyond where anyone could reach her.

 

‘ _ Yet more proof of my failure to you _ .’ There were four small pictures placed on the Hokage’s desk, of the past leaders and his family, and the Sandaime pushed one of them down. Minato Namikaze’s rich blue eyes were the exact shape and colour of the coma patient in Room 2B.

 

Then, the old man turned his attention to another failure standing before his desk.

 

“Have their bodies been exhumed?” Hiruzen asked, wondering why all of the other Kages seemed so vehemently against maintaining the peace, “Are we sure that they’re affiliated with Kiri?”

 

“Yes, Hokage-sama,” Yugao Uzuki reported. Despite the crusted shadow of dried blood on her side, and the exhaustion blanking her eyes, she kept her posture perfectly straight. This determination was born in part from her singular nature, as one of the few kunoichi to reach such high command. 

 

“Then get yourself to medics, and be ready to give a full verbal report tomorrow at 0800 time,” Hiruzen ordered, receiving a brief bow before the purple-haired woman left. The Sandaime raised one eyebrow at the two remaining shinobi- one mildly injured, and the other appearing to have been emotionally wrung over.

 

“Shisui? Itachi? Is there anything that you could not have reported tomorrow?” Hiruzen ensured that a note of reproach entered his tone, for though neither teen bore many physical scars, there was a haunted expression on the Uchiha heir’s face. One that the Hokage was intimately aware of; Itachi blamed himself for Miroku’s death. 

 

The messy-haired Uchiha looked cautiously at his cousin, before taking a deep breath. “Hokage-sama, we would like to request that this information be kept confidential.”

 

“If it does not prove risky to the village,” the Sandaime replied, intrigued.

 

There was another display of uncertainty, also directed to the younger teen, before Shisui steeled his expression. “Hokage-sama, are you aware of the Mangekyou Sharingan?”

 

_ ‘As if a clan heiress accidentally putting the Yondaime’s daughter into a coma wasn’t bad enough,’  _ Hiruzen thought, resisting the urge to take out his pipe, “Itachi activated the Mangekyo in response to Miroku’s death then?”

 

“Yes, Hokage-sama,” Shisui responded, clearly surprised by the Hokage’s knowledge. He shouldn’t have been. Hiruzen had been present when Tobirama-sensei ranted at his brother about Madara’s Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan and subsequent deceitfulness. 

 

“I see,” Hiruzen raised one hand and rubbed at his temples, “You are not to share this information with anyone else, byway of the Hokage’s decree.”

 

Because, for all that Itachi Uchiha was a brilliant and loyal shinobi, he was also a thirteen-year-old child, and Danzo would sooner rip those eyes from his sockets than allow an Uchiha to possess them.

 

“Susanoo is an ability that is available in every Mangekyo,” Hiruzen stated, “However, to my understanding, the last two should be unique. Do you know what they are?”

 

Shisui was too busy gaping like he had never seen his Hokage before to answer, but Itachi was able to reply. “Amaterasu forms inextinguishable black flames from my right eye, and and Tsukuyomi casts an extremely powerful genjutsu in the victim’s subconscious with my left eye. I have used neither eye, but am somehow aware of their capabilities.”

 

_ ‘Then the knowledge is implanted into the user’s mind after the Mangekyo is manifested,’  _ the Sandaime noted, interest in acquiring more information about this rare ability.  _ ‘But then, did he say…’  _

 

“Itachi, could Tsukuyomi be cast on a coma patient without irreparably damaging the link between the conscious and subconscious minds?” Hiruzen asked, because that had been the main concern of Inoichi. A suitably powerful mind-based genjutsu would neatly avoid that issue, but the ones available in Konoha were all designed offensively, and lacked versatility. A pre-formed impression would be formed on the victim’s mind, whereas Itachi’s jutsu suggested that any formations would be left at the user’s discretion.

 

The dark-haired teen gave a tentative nod. “I believe so, Hokage-sama.”

 

“Then I would like to solicit a favor from you,” the Hokage said, “I am not ordering you, because this is a personal request, and not an officially assigned mission from Konoha. You will need to share the details of your Tsukuyomi ability with Inoichi Yamanaka, so that he can direct you through the task. One of the village’s wards, Naruto Uzumaki, is currently in a coma, from the effects of the Mind-Body Jutsu: Inners Pools of Reflection. The jutsu causes her to face her subconscious fears, but hasn’t been able to run its course. You may be able to remove her from the coma. Will you accept?”

 

Hiruzen did not need a verbal answer, as Itachi’s eyes rapidly shifted from haunted and guilty to anxious and determined. The genuine concern that his posture demonstrated for the Uzumaki warmed the old man’s heart, and reaffirmed his former decision to allow their note-sharing to occur. Even with the added difficulty of the courtship rumor spreading throughout the village, Itachi’s impact on Naruto’s life had been immeasurably good for the young girl.

 

“I would be happy to do so, Hokage-sama,” the Uchiha heir swiftly replied, “May I start now?”

 

_ ‘Had I not known better, even I would believe those rumors,’  _ the Hokage thought, as the dark-haired teen’s expression filled with protectiveness. “Yes, of course. And Itachi? Thank you.”

 

x

 

‘ _ I leave for less than five days, and she puts herself into a coma.’  _ The callous nature of Itachi’s words, were quickly undercut by his almost desperate urge to move past the Yamanaka by the door, and rush to the tiny form buried under the wide expanse of the hospital blanket. It was the memory of Miroku’s glassy eyes, and Shisui’s gentle push on his back, that caused the Uchiha to break his nature.

 

“Foolish little girl,” the words were barely breathed, and yet deafening in the silent room. Itachi’s long, tapered fingers skimmed the sweaty bangs clinging to the blonde’s forehead. The teen didn’t have particularly large hands, but they dwarfed the Uzumaki’s, when he carefully took her right hand. He was blissfully unaware of the other reactions in the room.

 

‘ _ I really need to invest in a camera, _ ’ was Shisui’s immediate impression.

 

‘ _ A few years from now, and the rumors might not be false anymore, _ ’ the Sandaime mused.

 

‘ _ I knew they were together, but it’s one thing to rely on hearsay, and a completely different matter to see their love, _ ’ Inoichi thought, ‘ _ Fugaku’s matchmaking may be politically driven, but the Uchiha genuinely cares for the Uzumaki. _ ’

 

Hiruzen was kind enough to draw the attention away. “Inoichi, can you give me a report on Naruto’s condition?”

 

“I can’t measure any brain waves from her, but her vitals remain stable and her heartbeat, to our knowledge, has not spiked once during her coma. In my professional opinion, Naruto Uzumaki is fully immersed within her subconscious mindscape, and does not know how to leave,” Inoichi reported, with a grimace. “External interference by a mindwalker could possibly shred the link between the Uzumaki’s conscious and subconscious minds, as the Yamanaka jutsu fight against one another for dominance. The Uzumaki’s mind doesn’t have the training necessary to split her consciousness and employ two Mind-Body jutsu at once.”

 

“Does she have the fortitude to deal with a second consciousness by way of a genjutsu broadcasting a mental avatar?” the Hokage asked.

 

Inoichi’s face showed conflicting emotions- surprise, curiosity, anxiety, and optimism- as he gave a tentative nod. “An additional consciousness should not be an undue burden at her age. It would have to be an A-rank genjutsu, at least though, to break through the mind’s natural mental barriers.”

 

“Itachi Uchiha is capable of casting a mental genjutsu with that level of flexibility and strength,” Hiruzen replied, drawing a measure of amusement from the shocked look on the Yamanaka’s face, “He has agreed to use that jutsu on Naruto, in the hopes of drawing her out of her coma.”

 

“A genjutsu like that could be remarkably useful for mental health purposes!” Inoichi stated forcefully, navy green eyes focused on the dark-haired teens,  “I wasn’t aware that the Uchiha Clan had such a tool in their possession.”

 

“This is a personal jutsu, Yamanaka-san, and not the property of the Uchiha Clan,” Shisui replied, crossing his arms, “Itachi was the one to develop the jutsu, and it can only be used by his eyes.” 

 

“At thirteen years old…” the tall man breathed, making Itachi feel uncomfortable by the lie. He didn’t want to be praised for an ability that had taken neither skill nor desire to obtain. “I do think that this technique may be the best way to draw the Uzumaki out.”

 

“Good thing that Itachi’s here then!” Shisui replied brightly, diffusing the awkwardness for his younger cousin. The messy-haired boy moved closer to the bed, and clasped Itachi’s shoulder.

 

“Remember, you managed to make her fall for you, without your pretty boy looks or the Uchiha name,” Shisui murmured, pitching his voice low, “So just do whatever you’ve been doing up til now. Well, except for the stalking her around, lying about your identity, and doubting her mental stability bits. And, if you’re ever uncertain, just think about what I would do!”

 

“I would like to remind you that half of what  _ you  _ would do, is illegal for someone of her age,” Itachi said dryly, “And I haven’t made her fall for me.”

 

The messy-haired teen merely offered an indulgent smile, before he stepped back and allowed his cousin to focus on the sleeping blonde. The Mangekyou Sharingan needed eye contact to perform Tsukiyomi, so Itachi gently lifted one of her eyelids as his own irises bled crimson. The ability was instinctive to his line, and the younger Uchiha barely had to speak the technique’s name, before his consciousness was pushed forward, and the sight of one glassy blue eye faded away.

 

_ ‘This isn’t what I had expected, _ ’ Itachi thought, looking up from the blades of grass that he had landed on, ‘ _ It’s… peaceful. _ ’

 

The entrance to the forest could have been picked up from within Konoha, with a rich blue sky and yellow-white sunlight dappling the ground. However, the tree trunks were slimmer with youth, the leaves green-gold with nature’s first bloom, and the scene picturesque with new life. It exuded a sense of playfulness and welcome- a beckoning to explore- but Itachi was unnerved by the utter silence of his surroundings. There was the sound of wind blowing and water running, but no chirping of birds or movement of wildlife. 

 

_ ‘I’m entirely alone here,’  _ the dark-haired boy mused, ‘ _ Except for Naruto.’ _

 

As though her name held a power of its own, Itachi’s mind was suddenly aware of the shortest path necessary to the blonde girl. If anything, this merely increased his anxiety, for this endeavor shouldn’t be this easy, should it? He was determined to protect his friend though, before Naruto’s glassy blue eye gained the same permanence as Miroku’s brown ones, and followed the directions.

 

The trees became taller and older as Itachi walked on. As ancient as the boughs of the Forest of Death, but serene and protective where their counterparts were baleful and foreboding. The path unfolded like a twisting, crooked, and serpentine puzzle, and more than once, the Uchiha was sure that he had been made to walk in a circle. Clouds, branches, and leaves marred the fallen light, until shadows of foxes, beetles, swallows, and toads were glimpsed lurking in the treeline. Despite this, Itachi had an entirely unfounded confidence that he would not be attacked.

 

Nevertheless, the Uchiha was relieved when the trees broke into a meadow of flowers, where a blonde girl lied. No, not one blonde girl, but two, both lying on their sides, and facing one another. He didn’t think he made a sound, when one of the blonde’s looked directly at him, and drew her body upwards. There was the messy yellow hair, the pale gold skin, and the immediate scrunched-whiskers smile at his presence, that caused Itachi to feel a shiver of fear. Because Naruto’s beautiful blue eyes now featured crimson irises in pitch-black scleras. 

 

The red-eyed Naruto’s movement drew the attention of the other girl, and now a blue-eyed twin was facing him as well. The red-eyed girl said something to the other- too soft for Itachi to hear- and faded away. His attention was solely on the blue-eyed one now, whose expression showed surprise, interest, and, most curious of all, recognition.  

 

When Itachi had gotten within a few feet of her, the blue-eyed girl’s mouth opened. “I know you! You’re Sasuke’s mostly naked older brother!”

 

x

 

The words weren’t even halfway through her mouth, before Naruto realized that this was perhaps not the best way to greet an intruder into her mind. Or bring-up the embarrassing underwear heist that she totally, completely, and absolutely did  _ not _ think about at all, except for maybe once or twice when the boys sparred at the Academy, and she recalled how nicely muscled he was. Only twice though. 

 

“I’m sorry!”  _ That my face has turned into a tomato right now. _

 

Just as with the stomach kick, Sasuke’s older brother was kind enough not to acknowledge her mistake. “Hello, Naruto. I’m Itachi Uchiha, and I’m here to lead you out of your mindscape.”

 

“Nice to meet you,” the Uzumaki squeaked, focusing very carefully on the tree behind him, “I’d introduce myself, but you clearly already know, who I am.” The ‘why’ was unnecessary. She had broken into his house, and accidentally molested him, after all. 

 

“Will you follow me then?” Itachi asked. Unknown to the Uzumaki, was the dark-haired boy’s innate desire to check her body for bruises, and fuss over her, like he would for one of Sasuke’s injuries. 

 

“I- I don’t know,” Naruto hesitated, recalling her mirror-image’s final words. 

 

_ Don’t follow him, until he tells the truth.  _

 

_ ‘But what could an Uchiha be hiding from me?’  _ the blonde wondered. “How did you get here?”

 

“I used a genjutsu to form a mental avatar to enter your mindscape,” was the reply. There was something eerily familiar about the habitual nature of his answer, and Naruto was filled with an immediate determination to uncover the lie, her counterpart swore this teen had made.

 

“Why did you enter my mind?” the blonde demanded, because that  _ had _ to be an invasion of privacy. 

 

“You weren’t able to naturally end the Yamanaka jutsu on your own,” Itachi answered. Then, with a note of reproach, “Why did you use a clan-specific jutsu without adult supervision or the permission of an adult Yamanaka?”

 

“I wanted to prove that my mother was a Yamanaka,” the blonde admitted, blushing, “It wasn’t one of my better ideas.”

 

“And is that why you broke into the Uchiha Compound and stole one of my brother’s boxers?” the teen asked, the reproach fading. 

 

“Yes,” Naruto said, her pulse quickening. Was this the secret? Did he know… “Are you my ANBU”s Uchiha source?”

 

“Your ANBU?” The Uzumaki didn’t have much experience with discerning the introverted boy’s facial features, but Shisui would have spotted the hints of a smile immediately. 

 

“I- well- I meant to say-” Naruto spluttered, embarrassment clouding her face again. She wondered if she should find a way to track this boy again. She might be able to trail him around, and see the type of shinobi, he spent time with. The hope that her ANBU was amongst them, made the blonde take a discreet sniff of peppermint-and-ash… Naruto froze.

 

“You?” Her ANBU… and Sasuke’s older brother… who she had seen… and the notes… “ _ You?! _ ”

 

Because her nose must have been lying to her. He was too young to be an ANBU. He wasn’t a Hyuuga. She had called his brother a  _ teme _ , and described him as a stuck-up pretty boy… “I’m sorry!”

 

“You often say that around me,” the boy who couldn’t possibly be her ANBU observed, with a small smile, “I don’t think Yosei are supposed to apologize this much.”

 

The reference to her ANBU’s very first note, and the only compliment that Naruto had ever received about her hair, already at the forefront of her thoughts during the battle, caused the Uzumaki to make an unintelligible squeak. Her face had reached Hinata-levels of redness, as she considered every note, every Hyuuga denial, and every unexplained piece of knowledge about her school life. Things were making a terrible amount of sense, as the Uchiha teen stood patiently above her.

 

“Will you follow me?” Itachi asked again, his hand outstretched to the sitting girl.

 

Her chief emotion being mortification at the moment, did not prevent Naruto from placing her smaller hand in his grasp. “Okay.”

 

x

 

Omake for Dark Magician Girl98: 

 

(Congratulations on being the first to find out Hiroku’s identity)! 

 

The Edo Tensei was a great and terrible jutsu. It’s use in the Fourth Shinobi War wrecked havoc on battlefields, as some of the most powerful ninja of the previous generation's came back to life and were forced to kill their comrades. It led to heartbreaking moments between kinsman, lovers, allies, and enemies alike. One such example being the battle between Hiashi Hyuuga and his equally-skilled twin brother, Hizashi.

 

Therefore, Naruto Uzumaki’s brilliant plan to wrest control of the revived ninja from Kabuto Yakushi had been heralded with praise and admiration. Especially since to do so, gave their side an immense boost to power, with such famous personages as the White Fang, the God of Shinobi, the Yellow Flash, and the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero.

 

One person who wasn’t entirely thrilled though, was the boyfriend of the Yellow Flash and Hot-Blooded Habanero’s only daughter. Especially when said powerful individuals flashed over to see Naruto, and found him standing by her side.

 

“Itachi-chan!” Kushina shouted gleefully, her loud voice possibly broadcasting to the other end of the camp, as she threw her arms around him. There was a sense of pressure and plenty of red to cover his eyes, before the beaming woman drew back. “It’s good to see you!”

 

“Yes, Itachi,” Minato’s smile was smaller, as his ice-chipped blue eyes locked onto the Uchiha, “It’s good to see you.”

 

The dark-haired man took a step back, and didn’t feel any less manly for doing so. “Yondaime-sama.”

 

“Oh, you shouldn’t call him by that stuffy name,” Kushina scolded, once she had finished hugging her daughter, “We’re going to be family one day, after all. Mikoto-chan told me everything!”

 

“Yes,” Minato echoed, that odd little smile still on his face, “ _ Everything. _ ”

 

“She told us how you left those sweet notes to little Naruto-chan,” Kushina began excitedly.

 

“Ignoring your duty as an ANBU to be an objective observer,” was Minato’s offhanded addition.

 

“How you gave her scrolls on advanced chakra techniques and the Gale Palm jutsu.”

 

“Teaching my seven-year-old daughter dangerous shinobi skills without proper supervision.”

 

“And even that adorable mishap at your house,” Kushina concluded, clapping her hands together.

 

Minato’s smile notched another level of coldness. “Yes, we are fully aware of how you stripped yourself naked, and lay in wait to tarnish my precious only daughter’s virginal eyes.”

 

Itachi Uchiha looked from the sweetly-smiling woman, to the serene blonde sociopath currently spinning a Hiraishin kunai as he spoke. Kami, and there were people who swore that Kushina Uzumaki’s revenge was the more terrifying of the two?

 

“May I have ten minutes headstart?” Itachi asked politely, wondering how high his crow summons could fly.

 

“Five minutes,” Minato countered, leaning forward for the hunt, “Tick-tock,  _ Itachi-chan _ . Your time is running out.”

 

Itachi Uchiha was an intelligent young man. He ran.

 

x


	9. Chapter 9

When Naruto’s eyelids fluttered open, she was treated to the sight of ink-toned eyes, filled entirely with concern and then, relief, looking down on her. It took her a moment to recognize those eyes, because they had been bright crimson in her mind, but the moment she did, her physical body mirrored her mental avatar. Namely, her face turned a vivid cherry red, as the teen’s face kept hovering over her.

 

“If she faints, Itachi, I’m never going to let you live it down,” a lighthearted voice said, from close by, and the dark-haired teen moved away. 

 

Disappointment and gratefulness mingled equally inside of her, as the blonde girl tried unsuccessfully to will away her blushing cheeks. There was an echo of laughter in her mind, as Naruto’s red-eyed counterpart expressed her amusement over the situation.

 

“Naruto Uzumaki,” a tall, stern-looking man with long, pale blonde hair and serious navy green eyes stepped forward. Naruto stared at him blankly, before an echo of ‘Ino’ entered her thoughts. A moment later, and it was confirmed. “My name is Inoichi Yamanaka, and I am the mind specialist assigned to you. You’ve just woken up from a four-day coma, and I would like to perform some scans to see how you are.”

 

Had she been a full civilian, the man may have eased her more gently into the situation. As it was, Naruto’s Academy training had briefly covered handling emotional distress after succumbing to injury. 

 

“Yes, Ya-mana-ka-san,” Naruto croaked, her voice unusually dry and raspy, “May I ha-ve water?”

 

This proved to be an expected request, as a glass of cold water was pressed into the blonde’s hands, a moment later. Naruto slowly took a few sips, grimacing as the icy liquid brushed down her sandpaper throat, and observed the rest of the room. Inoichi Yamanaka was pressing a hand- glowing with pale green chakra- to her forehead, and the feeling was almost ticklish over her bangs. The Sandaime was present, smiling reassuringly at Naruto, and standing a few feet away from the Yamanaka. 

 

And her ANBU- er, the Uchiha- that is,  _ Itachi -  _ or, well, the boy that was making her horribly confused and didn’t even seem to know it, had moved to the other end of the room. By a familiar messy-haired teen, that had probably made the teasing comment, and was now waving enthusiastically to Naruto. Her limbs felt like an entire case of senbon had been driven through them, but the blonde ignored the pinprick feeling, and twitched her hand back and forth.

 

That must have been good enough, because when the Yamanaka moved away, the messy-haired boy stepped forward. “Hi! I’m Shisui Uchiha,” and his voice matched the one before, “You may remember me from some dashing waves at the Academy! Silent and creepy back there is my cousin.”

 

“He’s not creepy!” Naruto rasped out immediately, glowering at the boy. She may not know what to do about the recent Itachi revelation, but she wasn’t going to allow anyone to insult her ANBU!  _ The  _ ANBU. She wasn’t going to allow anyone to insult  _ the _ ANBU! 

 

“There are entire shinobi squads that would disagree with you,” Shisui replied.

 

Naruto’s scowl deepened. “They’re not very bright then, are they?”  _ And neither are you _ was implied.

 

“I think we’ll get along just fine,” the messy-haired teen was grinning even more brightly, as he stepped away and the Hokage took his place. 

 

“Hello Naruto-chan,” the old man said affectionately, and a softer smile crossed Naruto’s face when she saw him. This was someone that she didn’t feel conflicted about, so the blonde eagerly threw herself into the hug that he offered. 

 

“Ojiisan, it’s good to see you!” Naruto drew herself back, and looked at him critically. “You look particularly old this afternoon. Do you want to hand the Hat over to me now?”

 

“I think I can keep the Hokage’s seat warm for another few years yet, Naruto-chan,” Hiruzen chuckled, ignoring the expressions of indignity (Inoichi), awe (Shisui), and fond exasperation (Itachi). 

 

“Are you here to yell at me then?” the blonde asked, a dejected expression crossing her face. “Before you say anything, I want you to know that all of this was my idea. Shino and Hinata didn’t break into the Uchiha Compound, or approve of my trade. They both tried to convince me not to use the jutsu.”

 

“You should have listened to them then,” the Hokage sighed, making the blonde wince, “However, I do believe that this was a mistake born of ignorance, rather than malice, and there has been plenty of rebukes to be shared around. The scroll has been returned to the Yamanaka Clan, and you have been in a coma for almost four days. I believe that is enough punishment, though we will need to have a long talk.”

 

Naruto’s shoulders fell. “I thought that I was related to the Yamanaka, and this jutsu would prove it,” she confessed, tightening her palms, “Yamanaka-san… I am so sorry for my actions. I shouldn’t have taken one of your clan jutsu, and used it. And- and Uchiha-san, I’m sorry for breaking into your clan compound. I shouldn’t have done that either.”

 

“Uzumaki-san,” the gruff voice, caused her to look up. To her surprise, the stern-faced Yamanaka’s body was bent almost parallel to the floor, in a deep bow. “It is I who should be apologizing to you. My daughter knew the risks associated with our clan jutsu, and shared it with you, with the full expectation of your failure. She entered a foolish deal with dishonourable intentions, and I assure you, that Ino will be fully punished for that. It is to your credit that you managed to get as far with the Mind-Body jutsu that you have, and, moreover, I think the Yamanaka clan would’ve been lucky to count you amongst our numbers.”

 

Naruto stared at the other blonde, and her throat felt like it was closing into itself again. No one-  _ no one _ \- had ever suggested that she would make a good addition to any family. As a friend, yes. As a  student, once or twice. Even as a Hokage candidate, once by Ojiisan. But a family member… 

 

The messy-haired boy saved her from a humiliating reaction for the second time, by drawing her attention before she could start bawling.

 

“Well, the Uchiha Clan isn’t prepared to dismiss any charges,” he chirped, with a friendly nudge towards his younger cousin, “Our Matriarch has suggested that you can earn our forgiveness, by taking responsibility for your actions, and marrying this young, sad, and lonely wet blank- ouch! I was just joking Itachi!”

 

“The Uchiha Clan will not be pressing any charges,” Itachi said, reassuringly. “We understand that the actions weren’t done with malicious intent.”

 

_ ‘Except for that moment where I wanted to prank your brother,’ _ Naruto refrained from saying. The dark-haired teen had been speaking, and it would have been rude to avert her face, but as butterflies entered her stomach, the blonde decided that she would have been better off looking away.

 

“Like I said, he’s a total wet blanket,” Shisui managed to sidestep Itachi’s second elbow jab, “It’s also in your interest to know that he never,  _ ever  _ shares his sweets, has a brother complex a mile wide, and will rudely clean up everything in your apartment, until you can’t find your kunai holster, no matter where you look.”

 

Naruto stared at him blankly, and then tried to understand her ANBU’s reaction. There was a hint of redness around his face…

 

“I don’t like to share my ramen,” the blonde offered tentatively, and received a warm look from Shisui in response. 

 

“As interesting as that is, Naruto,” the Hokage interjected, hiding the sheer amount of amusement he felt at this situation, “I believe that you need to complete the rest of your check-up, and then get some rest.”

 

The blonde wanted to protest that she most certainly did  _ not _ need rest, since she had essentially been sleeping for the last four days, but, for some reason, she still felt tired. It was odd to think that coming out a coma added a fuzziness to her mind, that Naruto associated with exhaustion.

 

“I needed to use a great deal of your chakra to draw you out,” Itachi explained calmly, and a brief smile crossed Naruto’s face at how easily he read her. “The Hokage needs to speak with me now, but I’ll visit you when you’re awake, Naruto.”

 

The blonde stared back at the boy. Itachi Uchiha. Sasuke’s older brother. The boy she had fantasized about for the last week (which was something that she would have to work on, since it seemed disrespectful to have such thoughts about a friend). An ANBU. _ Her  _ ANBU. 

 

Naruto smiled. “Okay.”

 

x

 

“...although the news has not spread far enough to affect civilians or the lower level ninja, the current understanding among the clan heads and elite shinobi are that a courtship is progressing between Itachi Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki,” the Hokage concluded, leaning back and taking a satisfied huff of his pipe. 

 

He had insisted on bringing the two Uchiha ANBU, and young Itachi’s parents, to his office for a discussion about the rumors, and found that, apparently, Shisui was the only one who knew anything. Though even the messy-haired teen was surprised by how far the rumors had spread, and how detailed they apparently were, because he had only teased his cousin in front of their ANBU team.

 

Though even the Sandaime was surprised when Fugaku Uchiha bowed his head, in mild contriteness.

 

“Hokage-sama, on behalf of the Uchiha Clan, I apologize for the mistaken assumptions that my wife has inspired,” Fugaku said, missing Mikoto’s affronted look, “She is understandably over enthusiastic about our son’s love life-”

 

“Fugaku!” the dark-haired woman yelped, drawing his attention. “I did not spread those rumors!” 

 

The expression of mild obstinacy and reluctant impressment though, were enough indications that the mother wished that she had.

 

“I see,” her husband responded, after carefully analyzing her features, “Then, Hokage-sama, on behalf of the Uchiha Clan, I apologize for the mistaken assumptions that my nephew has inspired. He is understandably over enthusiastic about my son’s love life-” 

 

“Uncle Fugaku!” Shisui protested, “I only gossiped with my ANBU team. And maybe a few of the Uchiha matrons- and I think the Chuunin Gate Guards heard- and I may have waved at her once… but that was it! I didn’t inspire the rest of those rumors!”

 

Unnoticed by all, was Itachi Uchiha, who was trying not to sigh. How had a few notes, an occasional present, and some training scrolls led to the expectation of a  _ courtship _ between him and the blonde-haired child that hadn’t even known his identity then? Another thought occurred to him…

 

“Mother, if you are here, then who is watching Sasuke?” Itachi asked, a note of worry creeping in.

 

“Sasuke is already asleep, and I have your cousin, Akane, staying in the house, in case he wakes,” Mikoto replied. 

 

The Uchiha Matriarch briefly took a moment to mourn the loss of her veritable army of available babysitters. There was no end to the amount of fangirls that would eagerly volunteer to spend time with Sasuke, in order to show Itachi that they got along well with his beloved younger brother. A shame that Mikoto couldn’t take advantage of them anymore, but it was a small loss in order to link her son to Kushina’s daughter.

 

_ ‘I can hardly allow them to get close enough to sabotage Naruto-chan’s chances,’ _ Mikoto decided, ‘ _ Shame that she’s too young for Itachi-kun to fall in love yet. Affection, friendship, and time will move them to the proper conclusion though. And I’m sure that Shisui will be there to push them along, when I’m not available. He’s such a good cousin. _ ’

 

“Yes, well, none of the Uchiha were to blame for these assumptions,” the Hokage was speaking again, “Itachi has been exchanging friendly notes with Naruto-chan for a few months now, and I believe that Hiashi took notice of this, and came to some hasty conclusions. And Hiashi has always been skilled at… let us say, dissembling information?”

 

“So Hiashi Hyuuga is the one making rumors about my heir and the jinchuuriki?” Fugaku stated, the lines on his face deepening in displeasure, “Our clan has already suffered from false rumors regarding the Kyuubi attack, and now he seeks to fan those flames?”

 

Itachi’s face fell blank at his father’s tone, while Mikoto looked at her husband askance. The dark-haired Uchiha briefly wondered if he would be ordered to end his fledging friendship with the blonde Uzumaki, and was unsurprised by the sinking feeling in his stomach. Itachi Uchiha did not have so many friends, that the loss of one could be handled with indifference.

 

The Hokage merely took another contented huff. “Those rumors have been spreading for nearly a month now. Have they reinforced the negative image of the Uchiha Clan, Fugaku?”

 

The Uchiha Clan Head was about to snarl back that they couldn’t have possibly done anything else, when he felt his wife’s gentle hand at his elbow. Looking over at the imploring Mikoto, the high-strung man felt his anger abate, and forced himself to consider the words seriously.

 

“They have not,” he finally admitted, recalling instances of warmer greetings and calculating- but not cold- stares in the village meetings. Fugaku took a brief look at his son, and easily read the worry that he was attempting to hold in his carefully expressionless face. There was a time when Itachi wore his emotions freely. There was a tranquility that had been present in his movements for the last few weeks, which the father suspected to be borne from the Uzumaki’s notes.

 

“The rumors have weakened the suspicion of the Kyuubi attack, haven’t they?” Fugaku’s eyes didn’t move from his son, to see the approving expression on the Sandaime’s face, “And the notes have been good for Itachi.”

 

Shisui couldn’t possibly have kept his mouth shut. “They’ve been brilliant for each other, Uncle! Itachi’s shown human emotions on at least three different situations, when I mentioned his secret and forbidden love life! And Naruto broke into the Hyuuga Compound and stole random writing samples, just to learn his ANBU identity.” 

 

“Yes, thank you, Shisui. Your observations remain pertinent and useful, as always,” Fugaku deadpanned, “Are you aware that those actions constitute a crime?”    

 

“She wasn’t charged for them,” the messy-haired boy persisted, “Itachi should really keep Naruto as a friend, since she’ll be such a great connection one day. Did you know that she can use over ten consecutive Gale Palms without drawing on her tenant’s chakra? Or that her best friends are the Aburame heir and the Hyuuga heiress?”

 

“She does make a good friend for Itachi, Fugaku,” Mikoto added, not bothering to hide her true intentions, “I think they should continue their correspondence, as she is our son’s only close, young, single, and  _ female  _ friend.”

 

“We are not matchmaking our children, Mikoto,” Fugaku reminded her, halfheartedly. As a former clan heir, he had not enjoyed all of the restrictions on his life (with his childhood engagement to Mikoto being the main exception), and wanted to give his sons this freedom. Unless they brought someone entirely inappropriate home, like a foreign kunoichi or a Hyuuga, because that would undoubtedly lead to an arranged marriage. 

 

Ignoring his wife and nephew’s matching pouts, he turned his attention to his son. “Itachi, would you like to keep up your correspondence with Naruto Uzumaki?”

 

His son’s ink-toned eyes were the exact color and shape of his wife’s, and filled with the same warmth Mikoto had once held towards one insufferable redhead, as he responded. “Yes, Father.”

 

“Then I give you my blessing,” Fugaku responded. Mikoto did have a point about that sole, unattached female friend, after all. “Is this everything that you have called us here to discuss, Hokage-sama?”

 

“It is not,” Hiruzen’s eyes became pieces of granite, as he lowered his pipe and affixed a sharp stare to the younger man. “I will begin this, Fugaku, with the admission that I am hesitant about broaching this topic. You are a prideful man, and one often driven to arrogance, if I may be frank. But you have also fought loyally for this village, for almost three decades now, and I understand that your part in these recent affairs began with reluctance. Additionally, the circumstances surrounding your clan have changed and will likely change further by tomorrow. Finally, I believe that peaceful resolution requires at least one individual to make the first contact. And so, I shall make it.” 

 

“I would like to discuss the Uchiha Clan’s coup d’etat, Fugaku.”

 

x

 

Naruto woke up to another two pairs of her eyes. One was wide, pearlescent, had no pupils, and looked blind. The other was hidden behind a set of shades.

 

“Hey guys,” the blonde managed to croak out.

 

“Naruto-chan!” Hinata wailed, practically throwing her body atop the blonde’s prone form. Her thin- and surprisingly strong, Naruto noted- arms enclosed her for a moment, before the blue-haired girl recognized her own audacity, and sprang back. Typically, her face bore a crimson cast.

 

“Naruto, we are relieved to see that you’re awake,” Shino responded, adjusting his shades, and hovering worriedly above her bed, “Why? Because you have used an unknown jutsu from another clan without considering the full repercussions of your actions, and could have died as a result. We are also very upset with you. For the same reason.”

 

“I’m not upset with you, Naruto-chan!” Hinata burst out, aghast. She looked vaguely reproachful at the Aburame’s words, and the blonde got the impression that her most introverted friend was glaring back at her.

 

“Yes, you are,” Shino folded his arms, “We agreed that we would be upset at Naruto, remember?”

 

“I d-don’t want to,” the Hyuuga undecidedly replied, looking down, “She hasn’t e-even gotten out of the hospital yet...”

 

“Hinata, she is never going to learn her lesson, if we cannot be firm with her,” the Aburame was clearly exasperated, “Why? Because she needs to know that there must be limits to her behavior, and that, as her friends, we will not allow for this reckless endangerment.” 

 

“But she’s in the hospital,” Hinata said, wringing her hands together, “And w-we didn’t make her any cookies either…” 

 

At this point, Naruto simply couldn’t help it. She started to laugh, which was more of a wheezing, hacking sound that drew her worried friend’s attention to her. Still chuckling, the blonde pointed to the glass of water by her bedside, and, after a few sips, placed the glass away. Then, ignoring the stabbing feeling of her arms, the Uzumaki reached out and tightly hugged her two best friends.

 

“I love you guys,” Naruto admitted frankly, ignoring the furious blush on Hinata’s cheeks and the mild redness around Shino’s ears, “You’re the greatest friends that a girl could have, and, yes, Shino, you were right. My actions were reckless and stupid, and I should have listened to you. I can’t promise that I won’t do stupid things in the future, but I will try my best to listen to you guys first.”

 

Shino re-adjusted his glasses, pleased. “Yes, well, I’m glad to hear that, Naruto. Do you see, Hinata? Our firm display of disapproval worked.”

 

Hinata wanted to point out that she was a frequent recipient of her clansman’s disapproval, and thus knew that laughter was not the common response to such, but held her tongue. Shino and Naruto didn’t know how much of a failure their friend was, and Hinata was too selfish to tell them the truth. They might not want to be her friends if they knew.

 

Instead, she just smiled at the blonde. “P-please don’t worry us like that again, Naruto-chan.”

 

“At least one good thing came out of my reckless endangerment,” Naruto observed, beaming, “Hinata, your stutter is almost gone!”

 

“I was r-really worried about you,” she admitted, “I couldn’t focus on anything else, and it became easier to i-ignore all of my weaknesses.”

 

“You’re not weak, Hinata,” Shino rebuked, “Why? Because you are a kind-hearted and courageous person, that was willing to interrupt the Hokage and demand progress reports of Naruto’s condition, due to your concern. You are also the most powerful taijutsu fighter in our class.”

 

“Definitely! You kick ass, Hinata-chan,” Naruto added, supportively. The pale-eyed girl blushed.

 

“Still, while I’d love to discuss how amazing Hinata-chan is some more, there’s a few things that I need to tell you,” the blonde spoke, her humor fading as her rich blue eyes took on a serious glint, “There are a lot of discoveries that I made inside my mind. For one, my mother was an Uzumaki with a super awesome bloodline...”

 

Naruto Uzumaki was not a born storyteller, but between Shino’s insightful questions and Hinata’s supportive countenance, everything poured out. She covered the discovery of Yami Naruto, gave detailed descriptions of her mental battles, and mentioned her very first friend. There were tears to be forced back, as she talked about her childhood, and happier ones to be wiped away, when she explained her mysterious source of training scrolls. It wasn’t a full disclosure- because the notes themselves, were a secret only between Itachi and herself- but her closest friends were told most else. It took almost an hour until she was done.

 

“This is a lot to take in,” Shino finally sighed, “I will have to take some time to think over matters, but I assure you, Naruto, that this does not change anything between us. I believe that you are a good person, who has been dealt a bad hand in life, and that it is an honor to be your friend.”

 

“This only strengthens our opinion of you,” Hinata said, “You are a s-strong person, Naruto-chan.”

 

“Thanks,” Naruto sniffed, thankful that her friends ignored the tears rolling down her cheeks. They made her look silly. “I just wish that Ojii-sama would tell me more about my parents, so that I don’t have to do stupid stuff like this to learn about them.”

 

“Why won’t he tell you anything?” Shino asked, adjusting his glasses. “This is most unusual.” 

 

“He said that I’m too young,” the Uzumaki explained. “He promised to tell me after I became a Chuunin.”

 

“M-maybe he’ll change his mind?” Hinata suggested softly, “After this event, he may decide that it’s too risky to leave you uninformed.” 

 

“I’ll ask him,” Naruto replied, a hint of mischief entering her eyes, “The Hokage wouldn’t want to encourage my risky experimentation after all…” 

 

x 

 

Fugaku Uchiha remembered Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki.

 

His early impression of Minato had been negative, due to his elitism and the blonde’s status as a poor, clanless orphan with foreign features. Fugaku had considered him a fool for pursuing Kushina Uzumaki, when they were born into entirely different social circles. The Uzumaki was, from her paternal side, the niece of the Uzumaki Clan Head, and the third-in-line to inherit, should both of her cousins die prematurely. From her mother, Kushina descended from a bastard line of the Nidaime, and while that may carry negative associations with the civilians, clans were more focused on lineage. And the redhead had a _ powerful _ lineage, culminating in a rare bloodline and being personally handpicked for the role of jinchuuriki. 

 

She was wholly beyond the reach of the civilian-born Minato, and it seemed that the blonde knew it too, because he built himself up to a position, where he could be a serious contender for her hand. Fugaku suspected that this was unnecessary on his part, since Kushina genuinely loved him and routinely and publicly flouted social convention. However, he respected the man for proving him wrong and for making the masses fear the Namikaze name. 

 

His early impression of Kushina Uzumaki had started off positive, due to her social status, and quickly soured thereafter. He had called her a ‘tomato-faced disgrace to kunoichi’, she had referred to him as a ‘pink-eyed stick in the mud’, and both parties stalked off, while loudly wondering how Mikoto could stand the other. For his part, Fugaku couldn’t understand the strange friendship between the brash, loudmouthed redhead and his gentle, well-mannered Mikoto. As he grew older though, and subsequently more mature, the Uchiha realized that his wife adored the friend who couldn’t care less about her status, who added energy (and illegal acts) to her proper life, and who punched Mira Uchiha out for insinuating that she wasn’t worthy of being engaged to the clan heir. 

 

After a few years, Fugaku had even come to like both of Naruto’s parents, causing his opinions of their relationship to change. Now, he couldn’t understand how the brilliant and mild-mannered Minato could possibly want to marry the walking headache that was Kushina Uzumaki. 

 

Unlike her husband, Mikoto had been an early supporter of their potential relationship and one of Minato’s first advocates. She found his unpolished manners ‘charming’, his stammered compliments ‘sweet’, and his obvious fascination for Kushina’s hair ‘strange, but ultimately harmless’. After the kidnapping incident had occurred, she had convinced him and the Sannin Jiraiya to set off fireworks in the lobby, so she could sneak the red-faced Kushina to Minato’s hospital room. Since they had been discharged the next day, while holding hands, Fugaku presumed that Mikoto’s machinations worked.

 

Now she was practically dancing around in the kitchen, as she prepared a batch of cookies for Shisui, of all people.

 

Meanwhile, Fugaku was left to quietly sit in his office, and ponder the Hokage’s words.

 

The meeting had not been pleasant. When the Sandaime had mentioned the coup, Fugaku had been worried. When he started discussing the tactics they were planning, Fugaku grew suspicious. When he admitted that Itachi- his eldest son, his clan’s  _ heir _ \- had been spying on them, Fugaku turned cold. 

 

And then the conversation veered unexpectedly, as Hiruzen Sarutobi discussed not his family’s treason, but the mental and emotional toll that Itachi had been suffering under, as he tried to prevent a civil war. Fugaku had been tempted to hit the man, as the Hokage discussed Itachi’s growing stress marks, his alienation from his family, and even the  _ Mangekyou Sharingan _ that he had obtained last night. It was only Mikoto’s hand, pressing bloody crescents into his arm, that kept him from reacting.

 

When the Hokage took a pause, Fugaku turned, and looked at his blank-faced son. “Why?” he asked.

 

“A civil war would lead to the third shinobi war,” was Itachi’s soft answer, “And to protect Sasuke.”

 

“Why would you need to protect Sasuke?” Fugaku knew that this was an unnecessary question. As an ANBU-level shinobi, if the Hokage decided to act against the perpetrators of the coup, Fugaku, Mikoto, and Itachi would all be killed. Sasuke would effectively be left alone in a village that associated his surname with treason and betrayal.

 

Only the answer was much worse than he had suspected, because Danzo Shimura was apparently now breaching the idea of a full-massacre of adults and children, shinobi and civilians. Even if that idea was absurd, even if Fugaku doubted the Hokage was ruthless enough to allow it, even if it would be impossible to pull off without causing open revolt amongst the clans… Fugaku felt sick. 

 

There was a man that considered this to be suitable punishment for a few adult’s actions. A man that had been ‘helpfully’ mentioning each slight to his clan to him, during council meetings, egging his actions on for the massacre that he advocated.

 

The Hokage pressed on. The Uchiha didn’t have to be revealed as traitors, and the remainder of the clan shouldn’t be punished for the actions of the minority. The courtship rumors were already counteracting the negative perception from the Kyuubi’s attack. Even more people would be aware tomorrow, as Inoichi shared the news of Naruto Uzumaki’s recovery, due to the genjutsu by Itachi Uchiha. With young shinobi, like Itachi and Shisui, to their credit, the clan’s star was rising. 

 

“And how do you explain the ANBU watching us?” Fugaku had demanded, because that was one of the most bitter complaints amongst his kinsman. They were the leaders of the KMPF, and their own Hokage couldn’t trust them to uphold the law within their own compound.

 

The Hokage had insisted that they were not his own ANBU, but instead members of Ne. He had admitted to Danzo’s culpability, and warned the others of the repercussions should the old warhawk learn of Itachi’s Mangekyou. He had offered his sympathies and suggestions; perhaps they could continue to build on the courtship rumor?

 

Fugaku had firmly disagreed with this, and so had Itachi. Neither wanted to draw a child that was Sasuke’s age into this political standoff, and the latter had protested that the Uzumaki had no interest in him. Even Fugaku had looked on his son with disbelief at that comment, and that was one of the brief moments of levity in a long and serious discussion.

 

They had reached a compromise on that point. Itachi would explain the situation to Naruto, and while he would do nothing to encourage the rumors, he would also not try particularly hard to refute them either. The masses could continue to form their rumors, while additional attempts would be made at integrating the Uchiha into the main village.

 

Fugaku had felt briefly ashamed of himself, as he discussed plans to betray his clan’s elders and main planners, but forcefully drew it back, when he remembered Sasuke’s young face. He had been willing to sacrifice his fellow shinobi and villagers for his clan; how could betraying a few kinsman for the remainder of his clan, be much worse?

 

There had been concessions on both sides. Fugaku would remain the clan head, but Itachi would assume leadership of the clan on his twentieth birthday. Any civilians and shinobi under the rank of Chunin would be guaranteed clemency, should a fight ever occur, but the Uchiha wall would have to be broken down before the next year. None of the ANBU could resume patrols within the compound, and Ne operative would be firmly requested not to, but more Uchiha Chunin and Jounin would have to take team-based missions without clan members.  

 

It had been a productive meeting, and the four Uchiha, who had left it were of mixed emotions. Shisui had been plainly thankful, and Mikoto was both comforted and pleased. Itachi’s emotions had been harder to discern, but Fugaku could detect relief, anxiety, hope, and- for a moment- shame. This final emotion, had caused the older man to neglect his own maelstrom of reactions, and draw his son aside.

 

“I cannot say that I agree with your actions,” Fugaku began, as Itachi’s ink-toned eyes filled with pain, “The way we think is different, but I'm still proud of you… You truly are a gentle child.”

 

And now he was sitting behind an oak desk that had been possessed by his family for seven generations now. He was drinking a cup of hot tea that his wife had placed in front of him. Upstairs, his two sons were deeply asleep, one from the exhaustion of a productive day of play, and the other from the bloodshed of his profession and the stress that his own father had put him under. A burden that had been lightened by his friendship with Minato and Kushina’s daughter.

 

Fugaku Uchiha remembered Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki. He remembered a blonde man that could single-handedly change the world, and the redhaired woman that would affect the hearts of everyone around her. And to think that their daughter would change the fate of his own clan… 

 

x

 

Omake for ‘lyannamormontismyspiritanimal’: 

 

(Congratulations on correctly identifying the ‘Nothing Gold Can Stay’ poem by Robert Frost)!

 

There were three beautiful girls shopping in Konoha’s textile district on one particularly fine, spring day. One girl had waist-length blood red hair, rich violet eyes, and was gesturing wildly at the kimono on the window display. Another had shoulder-length raven black hair, oval-shaped ink-tone eyes, and was nodding thoughtfully at her friend’s words. The final young woman had short dark blue hair, pearlescent lavender eyes, and she was laughing softly at the other two.

 

Above them, were three handsome young men. They were arguing.

 

“Minato, we’re Chuunin now,” Hiashi hissed, “We can’t just be seen following kunoichi around. There are  _ consequences _ to this!”

 

“Many consequences,” Fugaku added, a displeased frown crossing his face, as he was forced to agree with his rival, “We are breaking laws for loitering, harassment, privacy,  _ theft _ -” 

 

“Oh, stop being such a stick in the mud, Fugaku,” Minato replied, not moving his eyes from the binoculars, in his hand. Safely ensconced in his pocket was the hairclip that a certain Uzumaki had lost earlier in the day. “I’m trying to focus. Do you think Kushina likes that green one? Do you think she’ll wear it, if I buy it for her?”

 

“You’re forgetting that the red heathen refuses to give you the time of day,” Fugaku reminded him. 

 

“This is so undignified,” the Hyuuga bemoaned, “We have all been promoted to Captains now, and must hold ourselves to a higher standard, Minato. How am I supposed to explain this to my clan, if we get caught? Not to mention the lecture that my sensei will give me, if I get demoted less than two weeks after reaching this position.”

 

“Uh-huh,” Minato said absently, adjusting the lenses, “Is that sales clerk flirting with Hiromi-san?”

 

“What?” Hiashi demanded, pushing the blonde aside, and craning his neck for a better look, “How dare he?! Minato, give me your binoculars!”

 

“May I remind you that this is currently  _ illegal _ ?” Fugaku huffed in exasperation.

“Oh, stop being such a stick in the mud, Fugaku,” Hiashi snapped.

 

Down below them, the three girls continued their enthusiastic conversation.

 

“Ha! And neither of you believed me when I said that Minato was a creepy stalker!” Kushina crowed, tucking a glowing sheet of paper in her sleeve, “As my _ Echo Funnel  _ seal has proved, that unreliable pretty boy isn’t as squeaky-clean, as everyone likes to claim!”

 

“Shouldn’t that only make him more attractive in your eyes, though?” Hiromi asked, gracefully opening a silken fan and using it to hide her smile. Kushina scowled at her friend, for daring to bring logic into the situation.

 

“No!” the Uzumaki exclaimed, “I like cool, funny pranks! Not perving on innocent girls, like that idiot!”

 

She crossed her arms, and moved her annoyed expression to their dark-eyed friend. “Can’t we move on now, Mikoto-chan?”

 

“Not for another few minutes,” Mikoto spoke quietly, making a show of admiring the green silk. After a few minutes, she raised her voice. “It does look lovely, Kushina-chan. It’s a shame that you can’t save up enough money to buy this-  _ and the jade necklace at Toki’s Luxury Goods-  _ in time for the Lantern Festival. I’m sure that one of your old kimonos would work just as well.”

 

Ignoring her baffled friends, Mikoto briefly peeked up, and then hustled the other two girls down the street.

 

“What in Inari’s blessed name was _ that _ for?” Kushina’s youthful features bespoke confusion. 

 

“I’m getting you free clothes,” the Uchiha explained, with a smug expression, “Minato’s always trying to buy you gifts-  _ don’t interrupt me, Kushina-chan!- _ and he’s often getting the wrong things. Since he’s going to buy you clothing anyway, we may as well point him to the right ones.”

 

“That’s exploitation, Mikoto-chan,” the pale-eyed woman said, her fan hiding another faint smile.

 

“I know,” Mikoto said proudly, “Kushina-chan taught me!”

 

x


	10. Chapter 10

Her ANBU had promised to visit her tomorrow, so Naruto was unsurprised when the dark-haired teen gracefully jumped through the window, balancing two boxes in his arms. For their second face-to-face meeting, he wasn’t wearing shinobi garb, and the blonde took a moment to admire Itachi Uchiha dressed as a civilian. The dark navy blue shirt and black pants were plain, but still managed to hint at the well-defined muscles that the Uzumaki knew were there.

_ ‘Wait, didn’t I promise to stop thinking of him like that?!’ _ Naruto thought, panicked, ‘ _ Ugh, not even five minutes in, and I’ve already failed that promise. _ ’

Oblivious to the blonde mentally berating herself, the Uchiha took a seat by the hospital bed, and handed her one of the boxes. “My mother thought you would like something home cooked for breakfast. I hope you don’t mind tamagoyaki and nori.”

“Er, no, this is great,” Naruto started fiddling with the bento box clasps. It opened to a neatly-arranged, delicious-looking breakfast, that made the girl’s mouth water. There were even cute little rice balls nestled into sculpted seaweed, like tiny oysters. “Thank your mother for me?”

Itachi inclined his head forward in affirmation, and opened his own breakfast. His companion’s rich blue eyes fastened on the long, tapered fingers, quickly undoing the restraints, and unbinding his chopsticks. Even though his hands were mostly used for killing, they handled the delicate pieces of wood with such gentleness… Naruto paused.

_ ‘When you start thinking that someone’s fingers are attractive, then you know that you’re a pervert, _ ’ the blonde decided, resigned,  _ ‘I am a terrible, terrible person.’ _

“Naruto, is there something wrong? Aren’t you hungry?” Itachi’s voice drew her attention from his hands, to the mouth that had just swallowed its first bite, to ink-tone eyes filled with confusion. The Uzumaki’s face only gained a brighter hue, as she tried to understand why she felt so embarrassed around her first friend.

“It’s fine! I needed a minute to- eh- appreciate your mom’s work!” the blonde chuckled nervously, poking at the perfectly spherical rice balls, “It’s really artistic! I’m inspired to make little oysters for my own bento box now. Not that I want to steal your mom’s idea, or anything! It’s definitely hers, but I would like to use it, once or twice. Only I wouldn’t want anyone else to have the chance to steal it either. Because Shino and Hinata share my bento sometimes, and, while they wouldn’t steal it either, Hinata’s clan is full of jerks. Or maybe that was just her asshole cousin?”

At this point, Naruto needed to take another breath, and realized that she had sounded like an idiot. “So, yeah… Your mom’s a great cook!”

“Thank you,” Itachi replied politely, and then took another bite. Naruto followed his actions, and, for few minutes, there was nothing other than two people quietly eating their breakfast. Despite her frustration over the situation, the Uzumaki had to admit that this was an excellent breakfast. Mikoto Uchiha definitely knew what she was doing in the kitchen.

Naruto was almost beginning to relax, when Itachi Uchiha chose to throw a wrench into her thoughts again.

“Are you angry with me?” the dark-haired boy asked softly, making the Uzumaki start.

“Why would you think  _ that _ ?” the blonde-haired girl was astonished. Unfortunately, her shock was read differently by the Uchiha.

“You didn’t answer my question before,” Itachi answered, putting his chopsticks down, “You’ve also been far quieter than I thought you would be, and you’re avoiding my eyes. The deliberate misdirection of my identity must have hurt you, and I understand that you were too shocked by the events of our previous meeting, to express that anger. I believe that you haven’t taken the recent revelations well.”

 

“What?” Naruto stared at him, blankly. 

 

“I would understand if you wanted to end our friendship,” Itachi continued, a frown crossing his face, “I will regret it, but I don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable in any way.”

 

_ “What?” _ was all that the Uzumaki could parrot.

 

The dark-haired boy’s lips upturned in a sad smile. “I hope that you’ll enjoy this meal, Naruto.” 

 

Seeing that the teen-  _ her _ ANBU- was about to stand up, and most likely walk out of her life, had the blonde girl reacting on instinct. “Dammit, sit back down!” 

 

Her shriek caused Itachi to pause, and receive the full effects of Naruto’s irritated glare. “You- you- you can’t just make those assumptions about me! I didn’t- because you-  _ in my head _ \- and those hands- I panicked, okay?! Because you’re older, and from a clan, and really smart, and that other boy said- not that I  _ am _ , because you’re my friend, and I really, really like you, as a friend… don’t move!”

 

Itachi Uchiha was probably staring at her like she’d lost her mind, but the Uzumaki was too busy rifling through her bedside table to notice.

 

_ ‘Bless Shino and his academic little heart, _ ’ Naruto considered fondly, extracting her notebook and a pen. She quickly scribbled a message down, and then handed it over to her pen pal. The blonde refused to look in his direction whilst doing so, and missed the faint smile on Itachi’s face.

 

‘ _ Why didn't you tell me that you were Itachi Uchiha?’ _

 

_ ‘The main reason is because I’m not supposed to share my ANBU identity with clients. After your protective detail disbanded, I realized that I also liked having a friend who didn’t know who I was. There are many people who seek my friendship due to my position in life, but I knew that you couldn’t have been one of them, because you didn’t know that I was the Uchiha Heir.’ _

 

_ ‘Is this a good time to mention that I don’t think you’re a stuck-up pretty boy anymore? I am sorry about that.’ _

 

_ ‘You’re forgiven. It was rather refreshing to meet someone that didn’t want befriend me, even when they knew who I was.’  _

 

_ ‘So it wasn’t because you were ashamed to be seen with me, in public?’ _

 

_ ‘Not at all. I would be glad to spend time with you, publicly or otherwise. You may not want to be seen with me, though.’ _

 

Naruto’s eyebrows rose sharply as she read those words, and then she sent the teen a puzzled look. Itachi beckoned back for the notebook, and then turned to a new page.

 

‘ _ Our previous interactions were not as discrete as I’d assumed. Several people have observed them, and made the presumption that we are romantically involved. Publicly meeting together will fuel their rumors. I am not particularly affected by them, but you may have some added difficulties. _ ’

 

The blonde’s eyes widened dramatically when the notebook was handed back to her. She would have liked nothing more than to be able to simply stare at the slanted handwriting for the next few minutes, but knew that Itachi was waiting for a response. The blonde peeked at his intent expression, and then wrote her answer down.

 

‘ _ What kind of difficulties? _ ’

 

_ ‘Because I can’t imagine why any girl would be upset if everyone thought they were in a relationship with a cute, older boy,’  _ Naruto mentally added, ‘ _ Only I’m not supposed to think about him like that, because we’re friends. And good friends don’t fantasize about other friends. Probably. _ ’

 

She could have sworn that Itachi Uchiha was hesitating, before he made his reply. 

 

‘ _ As a clan heir, there will be more gravity placed on any romantic relationships that I enter, as compared to a normal crush. You will be judged in relation to the Uchiha Clan, and to me, and there are people who may not be kind to you, due to their aspirations for my social position. _ ’

 

Naruto read the note. Once. Twice. A third…  _ oh,  _ that made much more sense. _ ‘Fangirls?’  _

 

When the blonde girl handed the note over, a cheeky grin was present on her face. When the dark-haired boy read it, a grimace crossed his. Itachi nodded.

 

_ ‘I should warn you that my family is benefiting politically from an association with you.’ _

 

Blonde hair fell to the right, as the Uzumaki cocked her head to the side. She considered the words.

 

‘ _ I don’t care if people hate or love our friendship, and I don’t care if they make up any rumors about me. If they get too annoying, then I’ll be able to prank them back. You’re my friend, and I want to get to know you outside of our notes.’ _

 

Naruto received a small, but brilliantly sincere, smile for her words, and Itachi was left to wonder why the blonde’s face was crimson red again, as she accepted his next message. 

 

_ ‘Would you like to practice the Great Fireball jutsu when you’re discharged from the hospital? _ ’

 

The blonde was so excited by the possibility of more ninjutsu, that she didn’t bother to write her answer down. “Yes! But… I haven’t mastered the water-walking technique yet…” 

 

“You’ve made enough progress for me to continue with the lessons. Although, we  _ will  _ have to communicate verbally…” Itachi teased.

 

“Hey! I can talk normally too,” Naruto pouted, meeting his ink-tone eyes. There were still nervous butterflies in her stomach, but she attributed them to potential shinobi training now. “Will you have the time to train me though? Teme- er, Sasuke’s always complaining about how busy you are.”

 

“Please don’t let my presence interfere with your unusual relationship with my brother,” Itachi offered, the brief amusement in his expression draining away. All of a sudden, Naruto could see the exhaustion and grief in the teen’s dark eyes. “I have more than enough time to teach you. My ANBU activities have been… temporarily halted.”

 

Naruto studied his reaction, and then reached out a tentative hand. The dark-haired teen didn’t move away, so the blonde let it rest on his arm. “What happened?”

 

“A team member died in a post-mission ambush,” Itachi told her, “And it was my fault.”

 

“If you killed another ninja, then you would be running away from Hunter Nin right now, and not talking to me,” the Uzumaki told him.

 

The teen shook his head. “I may not have thrown the kunai at him, but the enemy that I was supposed to have killed, did. I made the mistake of assuming that the threat had already been neutralized, and one of the ANBU on my team died as a result.”

 

Naruto frowned, as she heard those words. She hadn’t been trained to counsel shinobi, but the flaw in this reasoning seemed obvious to her. “Itachi, it sounds like you were attacked by a team of shinobi after your team had finished the mission, and were already tired. You all fought, and the person that you were fighting had been injured to the point of death. So you relaxed your guard, and he or she managed to launch a surprise blow on your teammate, right?”

 

The Uchiha nodded, and she pressed on. “Did you push your teammate in front of the attack? No? Then, if you didn’t attack your teammate yourself, push him into the firing row, or purposefully let the enemy live, then how is this your fault? Your friend’s death sounds like a tragic mistake, but not one that can be blamed on anyone other than the enemy nin that killed him.”

 

“I knew that stomach wounds were slow to bleed out,” the dark-haired teen argued softly. 

 

“Medical estimates aren’t made in the middle of a fight, Itachi,” the Uzumaki replied, face taking on a green tinge at the picture, “And I doubt there’s ever a clear-cut standard for how long it would take for any stomach wound to bleed out. I’m not a professional, and I can’t judge your mission experience like your teammates can, but I don’t think you’re responsible for that man’s death. You’re too good of a person to kill a teammate.”

 

Seeing the doubt on the boy’s face, Naruto sighed. “Okay, I can see that you’re still not convinced. I think you should talk to your other teammates. They would agree with me on this.”

 

The Uchiha’s expression softened. “Naruto, I can’t leave you alone in the hospital-”

 

“Yes, you can,” Naruto interrupted firmly, “Ojii-san is going to visit me soon, anyway, and Shino and Hinata promised to come over after school. You need to go talk with your teammates.”

 

The hesitation on his features only made the Uzumaki more determined. “ _ Please _ , Itachi?”

 

The pleading look in her rich blue eyes, finally resulted in a wary nod. “I suppose that I do need to check up on the others. Will you promise to behave yourself when I’m gone? Follow all of the doctor’s orders? Finish the food that they give you? Not stress yourself by moving unnecessarily or-”

 

“Yes, yes, I’ll be fine,” Naruto assured, listening to several more admonishments and warnings from her surprisingly overprotective ANBU friend, before she managed to shoo him away. Once, she was sure that the Uchiha had left, the blonde snatched her notebook up again, and flipped through the pages. So her parents had been politically important people, had they…? 

 

x

 

“Hiashi was right!” Inoichi declared, sitting in the bar stool and gesturing for a drink. His best friends, and fellow clan heads, Chouza Akimichi and Shikaku Nara, looked at him curiously.

 

“Right about what?” Chouza asked, knowing that Shikaku was too lazy to start the questioning.

 

“Fugaku’s son is definitely courting Minato’s daughter,” Inoichi explained. 

 

“Can’t believe one of Hiashi’s wild theories are true,” the Nara contributed, head propped on the table. 

 

“Not all of his theories were crazy,” the blonde man defended.

 

Shikaku's eyebrow rose. “What about when he claimed that the Hyuuga were related to the Sage of Six Paths? Or that the Kurama Clan descended from a cult that worshipped the Kyuubi? And there was that time when he swore that Fugaku Uchiha set the hospital lobby on fire when we were teens.”

 

“Okay, so  _ some  _ of them are a little far-fetched,” Inoichi allowed, “ But I saw this one with my own eyes! The Uchiha rushed to her bedside right after a mission, and I swear he showed genuine emotion. He even saved from the jutsu. Remember the coma? Itachi used a self-made, S-ranked genjutsu to bring her out of it.”

 

Chouza whistled. “Now that sounds damn impressive.”

 

“Has he given it a name yet?” Aoba Yamashiro called out, one of the many ninja at the bar to eavesdrop on the conversation.

 

Inoichi shrugged, and took a swill of his drink. “He said ‘Tsukuyomi’ once, before activating it, but I’m not sure if that’s the name, he’ll go with. Still, I’m glad that he was able to use it, to get that little girl out of her coma. I’m sure the jutsu has a lot of potential when dealing with psychological scarring. It broadcasts a mental avatar of the person using the technique, and, as far as I can tell, lets the user implement their own settings in the victim’s mind.”

 

“Can that jutsu be taught to others?” Ibiki Morino asked, interested. 

 

“I think that only Itachi could use it,” the Yamanaka shook his head, “Itachi developed it for his eyes only, and at thirteen too… Fugaku’s going to be absolutely insufferable.”

 

“It’s the graduated-the-Academy-at-seven situation all over again,” Chouza groaned.

 

“And Fugaku won’t be the only one either,” Shikaku sighed, raising his voice, “Oi! Hiashi, get over here. It turns out that you were right.”

 

“Naturally,” the Hyuuga replied indifferently, raising one dark eyebrow as he drew closer, “In what matter, have I proven myself correct today?”

 

“Fugaku’s son has definite feelings of the Uzumaki girl,” Chouza answered, cheerfully. “Take a seat, Hiashi, and tell us how you first learned of it. Bartender, bring a cup for this good man!”

 

“It’s far too early to drink right now,” Hiashi sniffed. Nevertheless, he accepted the sake, and began to share his observant discovery of his political rival’s machinations. After a quick summary, he moved on to the latest news, delivered by Hinata’s complaints. 

 

“And, according to my trusted source, Fugaku’s son intends to share an Uchiha coming-of-age ceremony with the Uzumaki girl,” Hiashi informed, “They also intend to deny the courtship rumors, for Naruto’s protection. As someone who has dealt with them myself, I approve of young Itachi’s distrust of fangirls…” 

 

x

 

When Naruto returned to her mindscape, her first thought was that her counterpart had definitely been busy. The previously empty forest now echoed with the sounds of young, red-eyed woodland creatures moving over the land. The strangely independent shadows were even more plentiful than before, and the brisk chill of a dark wisp running over her feet, suggested that they were gaining substance too. Fruits and berries glittered like jewels among the trees, snow brushed down onto the eastern part of the forest, and a deep lake had formed at the center of her meadow.

 

“Yami,” Naruto called out, reaching for one of the orange-gold flowers at the banks, “Where are you?”

 

“Here!” the red-eyed mirror-image nearly caused her to jump in shock, as her head popped out of the lake, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

 

“Why?” the Uzumaki asked, before the petals abruptly burst into fire, “Ah! Ow! What the hell?”

 

“No clue,” Yami swam forward, and pulled herself out of the lake. Her form was entirely dry. “Did the Old Geezer tell you about Mom?”

 

“Ojii-san promised to send someone,” Naruto replied, overlooking the disrespect, as she smiled at the memory of her conversation with the Sandaime, “Have you learned anything about our father?”

 

“Blonde, blue-eyed, not a Yamanaka, not a civilian, important, and lots of chakra,” her mirror-image counted off, “That narrows the list down… assuming he wasn’t a foreign nin, or anything. I know the Old Geezer promised to tell us when we became Genin, but we’re not going to listen, are we?”

 

“I promised him that I wouldn’t search for our father’s identity, and I don’t want to break that promise,” Naruto said slowly, “However, I will take any hints that are dropped in front of me, and if you want to think it through, here…”

 

_ ‘There is something really disconcerting with seeing yourself grin evilly, _ ’ the blonde decided, as her counterpart rubbed her hands together. Her thoughts bounced forward to the girl, and Naruto received a stuck-out tongue in reply.

 

“We’ll talk about the pretty boy after your first lesson,” Yami stated, already knowing about the Uzumaki’s reluctance, “I don’t know how time passes here, so we’ll have to be quick. There are two things I want to talk about. First, what do you think about the lake?”

 

Naruto blinked at the non-sequitur. “Er, it looks nice?”

 

“Yes, it does,” the red-eyed girl agreed, “But it’s full of those awful memories that you pulled out of me. They’re like tiny piranha fish, that’ll attack you, if you don’t know the proper routes. Don’t go swimming without me, okay?”

 

Naruto shuddered. “Why would I want to go swimming at all?”

 

“Because there’s something down there, that you  _ need _ to see,” Yami answered, confidently taking a step into the water, “Don’t bother holding your breath.”

 

“I- I don’t know,” the Uzumaki looked at the water, warily. She didn’t want anything to do with those horrible memories. 

 

Her mirror-image looked back, and held a hand out. “I know I’m not a cute, older boy, but… will you follow me?”

 

Naruto’s pale-gold skin flushed red. “Hey!” she yelped, ignoring the hand and wading in, “You’re part of me, so you like him too!”

 

“I’m not the one you need to confess to, Naruto,” Yami sing-songed, before ducking her head underwater. She avoided the splash that the Uzumaki tried to send her, which caused the blonde to huff in exasperation, and duck under too.

 

‘ _ Whoa, _ ’ was Naruto’s first thought. The lake was crystal clear, making her think that she was swimming through a rich blue sky, and appeared endless. Her first instinct was to hold her breath, but when the blonde experimentally clenched her throat, and opened her mouth, no water rushed in. Instead, she was able to breathe, as easily as though she was on land, and kicked her legs forward to propel her.

 

_ ‘Hey!’ _ This lake didn’t have nearly as much resistance as real water, and Naruto’s first kick propelled her several feet forward. Then a hand encircled her ankle, and if Yami’s golden hair wasn’t shrouding her face like a whisper-thin halo, Naruto would have panicked. The next few minutes were spent slowly following after Yami, and trying to get the hang of the water, before they could truly swim. As the currents moved her along, the Uzumaki observed the lake. She couldn’t see any piranha, but there were jellyfish, sea horses, turtles, stingrays, and even a crimson shark.

 

_ ‘Is that a vault door on the bottom?’  _ Naruto thought, once her feet landed on the sandy floor of the lake. In front of her was a giant, chained door, laid down on the sand, and with a deadbolt across. Made of dark bronze and with every inch inscribed with black squiggles or iron locks. _ ‘I can see why Yami wanted to show this to me.’ _

 

She looked over to her counterpart, and the red-eyed girl pointed to the surface. Naruto followed behind, relieved to have her head break through the surface of the lake. While the trip wasn’t too bad, there was a certain foreboding feeling that the vault door gave off.

 

“You didn’t try to open that door, did you?” Naruto questioned, bringing herself to shore.

 

Yami snorted. “Do you really think I’m as reckless as you are?”

 

“So you failed?”

 

“Badly. Do you know who put that giant seal work in us?”

 

“Well, it’s not like we have an Uzumaki for a parent or anything…”

 

“Yeah, yeah, I’m sure that’s the most likely answer. But there’s just something… weird about that door. It creeps me out.”

 

Naruto nodded. It creeped her out too.

 

Then a bright smile crossed Yami’s face. “So I figure we should get pretty boy here, and make another run of it!”

 

“You’re definitely not as reckless as I am,” Naruto deadpanned, “You’re worse.”

 

“You just don’t want the disappointed parent routine from Shino and Hinata again.”

 

“That too,” the blonde girl allowed, knowing the futility of lying to herself. The Inner Mirrors of Reflection jutsu had been remarkably beneficial in that aspect, at least. “Can you teach me about the chakra chains now?”

 

Yami’s iridescent eyes glittered with anticipation, as she sat across from Naruto. “The first thing you have to know is that these chains are a part of us. We don’t make them; they form naturally as our chakra reserves grow. Right now, you only have four of them inside of you, and you need to learn how to draw it out. They’re there, but you need to give them shape.”

 

“I want you to close your eyes, and look inside of yourself. There’s chakra there, just as there are in all living things. Part of that chakra will be different. It’ll feel… thicker, I guess, and move more slowly than the normal chakra. Before you can shape the chakra, you need to identify and draw it out…” 

 

x

 

“I’m surprised to see you here, Hiruko,” the sibilant voice of the yellow-eyed shinobi echoed against the iron-latticed walls of the Akatsuki Compound, “Haven’t you been avoiding me? I confess myself hurt that one of my oldest of friends would not even notify me of their continued existence.”

 

“I haven’t bothered speaking to you, Orochimaru, because there’s nothing to say,” the white-haired man replied, in a soft monotone. “Shouldn’t you be out on a mission with Sasori?”

 

“Leader-sama decided that a civilian assassination didn’t need two S-ranked ninja,” Orochimaru explained, “I did not mind. This gives me more time to spend on my  _ research _ , after all.” 

 

Hiruko was indifferent. “Your bastardisation of my Chimera Technique?”

 

The Snake Sannin’s eyes gleamed. “Yes, that was a rather brilliant jutsu. My own would assume the forms of other individuals, rather than assimilate their own into my body though. I was particularly impressed by the second matrix, that stole the lifeforce of the victims. Ingenious.”

 

“It can’t be used to transfer dojutsu, Orochimaru,” Hiruko pointed out, “It won’t bring you those Sharingan that you so desire. Now why are you here?”

 

“The Chimera Technique is still a good basis for my own jutsu though,” Orochimaru disagreed, “Not that this is relevant right now. And why would I need a reason to be here? Can’t I simply want to talk to the only other Konoha missing-nin, who my sensei drove out of the village?”

 

Hiruko’s mouth twisted. “With your help, you should add.”

 

The dark-haired man waved the accusation away. “True, but I was not as… enlightened, as I am now. You could even say that you inspired me to pursue my own research. Certainly your samples of the Shodaime’s DNA were integral to prolonging the first specimens… ah, I seem to have hit upon a sore spot. Are you still stinging from that rejection?”

 

The other man’s training was too ingrained for his hands to flex, but pinkish-red eyes funneled into the reflective gold of the Snake Sannin. “I have no interest in your games right now. Leave.”

 

“Kukuku, if that is what you wish,” Orochimaru chuckled, lengthening his stride, “Perhaps we shall have another chat soon, Hiruko?”

 

He didn’t receive an answer, as the white-haired man, in the form of a young teen, turned towards his own room. Only when hidden by the ironwork and secrecy seals of his walls, did Hiruko allow his lips to fall downwards in a frown. The minimal reaction that he had shown in front of that blasted snake was unacceptable, but an unfortunate consequence due to the composure lost within the Akatsuki.

 

_ ‘But how could I not be angry when I see Sumiko’s brat almost every week?’  _ the white-haired man thought. He had been surprised to find that the public leader of this secretive organization had the same chakra signature as Sumiko Uzumaki, but it had been too late to back out then. Mostly because he needed Akatsuki’s resources and information for his own plans.

 

Hiruko supposed that it was only Sumiko’s brat and his blue-haired whore that actually believed that tripe about capturing all of the jinchuuriki and demanding international peace. Of the others, Kakuzu was only interested in the money, Orochimaru in resources and protection from Konoha, and Sasori in opportunities to expand his spy network. Hidan cared for nothing but his god, and Hiruko himself wanted Tsukiko’s granddaughter.

 

Tsukiko. Even after all of these years, her silver-pale hair and reddish-brown eyes easily came to mind. Hiruko had met her as a genin, on a mission to the now-destroyed Land of Whirlpool, and fell in love with the beautiful and light-hearted girl. The memories that he had of talking and laughing with her on the beaches and canalside stands of Uzushio were the happiest of his life. She had chosen him, as a no-name genin of no particular talent, as her best friend. They looked similar enough that Tsukiko even teased him of being her brother, but Hiruko had wanted more. So much more.

 

‘ _ Not that her family would have accepted me, _ ’ Hiruko thought scornfully, ‘ _ Not for the daughter of the Nidaime. Not when Hisoka was there to court her. _ ’

 

Of all of the individuals in the world, it was Hisoka Uzumaki that Hiruko despised the most. The man was born with every gift that Hiroku lacked- a noble clan name, a powerful bloodline, and a talent for charming women. Certainly, Tsukiko had found him charming; had lit up with every gift and compliment. Hiruko had been forced to watch, helplessly, as the red-haired second son of the Uzumaki Clan Head stole the heart of the woman, that _ he  _ had loved. A woman that would have been better off with him too, since Hiruko would have taken her away from the Sacking of Uzushiogakure. 

 

‘ _ I wouldn’t have made her change either,’ _ the man bitterly added, recalling Tsukiko’s withdrawal from the Uzushio Shinobi Forces, after her marriage, and her more restrained manner, after Hisoka came.

 

Hiruko had tried to convince Tsukiko to reject the man, but all his efforts had resulted in, was a chasm forming between the childhood friends. The two began to drift away, with their lives in separate villages and their work preceding the second war. Hiruko had used the excuse of village tensions to skip her wedding, and the rising threat of Amegakure to skip her daughter’s birth. He had no interest in meeting Tsukiko’s little girl, not when she had Hisoka’s crimson hair, violet eyes, and chakra chains.

 

_ ‘Then Tsukiko died, and Kushina became the final testament to her mother’s life, _ ’ Hiruko’s eyes closed, as he remembered those darker days,  _ ‘I was a missing-nin by then, but I could still follow her life from afar. To think that they would make Tsukiko’s child a jinchuuriki… or that she would marry a no-name boy of her own…’  _

 

Hiruko had silently tipped his hat off to Minato Namikaze, for accomplishing with Kushina Uzumaki, what he could not do with Tsukiko Senju. In a strange parallel of the story, Minato and Kushina had a daughter of their own, that shared little to nothing of either Hisoka or Tsukiko’s features. They had died, and Hiruko had planned to leave Naruto Uzumaki to her own life, when he was approached by a strange masked man.

 

‘ _ I may hate Hisoka, but I could never let Tsukiko’s line die off, _ ’ the white-haired man acknowledged, ‘ _ I’ll work with Akatsuki for now, and even support their plan, if they can keep the jinchuuriki alive, post-Bijuu extraction. Then I’ll steal Tsukiko’s granddaughter away, and continue my own plans. _ ’

 

Hiruko had always intended to acquire immortality and conquer the shinobi world. After achieving the first part of his goal, his thoughts had strayed to the loneliness of his future. He had never wanted to share power, and the Afterlife that was not a realm that Hiruko would intrude in, but… his appearance remained eternally youthful. And Tsukiko had a granddaughter that bore no physical traces of Hisoka’s blood. He had intended to spare the child’s life anyway, but perhaps he could offer Naruto Uzumaki more than just her life.

 

x

 

“Then I’m not working today!” Ino screamed back, stomping up the stairs. The platinum-blonde girl made sure to jump on the second-stair from the top, as that was one of the creakiest ones, and slam her door shut, before throwing herself on the bed. How dare her parents ground her?!

 

_ ‘This is all that baka’s fault!’ _ Ino growled, feeling her temper rise up. She grabbed one of the plush pillows on her bed, and threw it against the wall. There was a soft plopping sound, as it bounced back to the carpet, and that was soon followed by a harder, and more satisfying, thunk of her clock. 

 

“Ino Yamanaka, stop throwing your things!” Kimiko's strident voice called from below, “Destroying them will only add to your punishment!”

 

The platinum-blonde tossed another pillow at the door in response, and then buried her head into the bed, to muffle a frustrated scream. Her sharply manicured fingers- because Sasuke-kun would only like a lady with delicate hands- ripped into the violet-patterned bedspread. Ino screamed again.

 

_ ‘I hate her! I hate her! I hate her!’ _ the Yamanaka jumped off of her bed, and ran to her bookcase. ‘ _ How could she be stupid enough to even use that jutsu? How could she mess it up that badly? How could Daddy blame me for the baka’s mistakes? _ ’

 

Shreds of papers surrounded the young girl, before Ino threw the remainder of the book at the door too. Her foot grinded the papers to the floor, and then, because that didn’t cool the anger simmering within her, the platinum-blonde girl kicked the wall. Once. Twice. A third time, and even more.

 

_ ‘Grounded for a month, no trips or visits with friends, no allowance, extra training, and apologizing to the baka.’  _ Bile rose in the girl’s throat, as she considered the ramifications to her social life and pursuit of Sasuke. ‘ _ Sure, the baka fell into a coma for a little while, but what was the big deal? Daddy fixed her up quickly enough, and no one’s talking about punishing  _ her _ for using Yamanaka techniques. _ ’

 

No, all of their anger for that was directed at Ino herself. At least three of her clansman had visited the house, just to lecture the Yamanaka heiress, and Kimiko Yamanaka had allowed them to. Her mother! Her mother, who absolutely hated sharing Ino’s discipline with anyone else, even her oft-forgiving husband. Not that Inoichi Yamanaka had been in a very forgiving mood, when he ripped into her for entering deals in bad faith and risking clan secrets.

 

_ ‘Maybe I shouldn’t have given her the Inner Reflections technique, but it’s not like I expected it to work,’  _ Ino thought, stomping her foot, ‘ _ The baka must have missed a hand sign or two, to even get that jutsu to work. It’s not like she has the Yamanaka advantage to lower the chakra cost to her. _ ’

 

Nevertheless, the baka’s strange, semi-successful use of the technique was not the issue. Ino was furious about the punishment levied on her, and knew exactly who to blame for it. Shino Aburame, Hinata Hyuuga, and Naruto Uzumaki all helped get her in trouble, but the first two were clan heirs. The last one wasn’t, and Ino would be able to work her frustrations out on her.

 

_ ‘Though Daddy did say that the baka was being courted by Sasuke-kun’s brother. That’s absurd, of course, because why would an Uchiha be interested in a no-name orphan, like her?’  _ Ino reflected, ‘ _ Still, just in case it is true, I should be a little more discrete in my revenge… _ ’ 

 

x

 

Omake for  Elder Dragon 93:

 

(Thanks for the idea for Itachi’s nickname! It’ll be Kage no Ryuujin, for the great sea dragon that was an ancestor of the Japanese imperial dynasty. In this story, the dragon will also be the guardian spirit deity of the Land of Whirlpools, and a minor subplot for Naruto’s ancestry.)

 

Chiaki Komatsu was a relatively young nurse to be assigned to the birth of the Uchiha heir, but she had been picked for valid reasons. The plain-faced brunette had extensive experience as a midwife for the noblewomen of the Daimyo’s court, acted with dignity around people of power, and possessed a natural talent for soothing expectant mothers. Since Naruto Namikaze-Uchiha was about to give birth for the first time, her superiors had thought that Chiaki’s calming influence might be necessary.

 

And it was. For everyone but the expectant mother apparently.

 

“Keep hold of my hand; don’t worry, you’ll be fine; we’ll have several doctors on standby,” Itachi Uchiha frantically rearranged the pillows, “Childbirth is a perfectly natural event- maybe I should bring another midwife in-”

 

“A grandchild, a grandchild, I’m going to have a grandchild,” a dark-haired woman sung under her breath, as she politely bustled around and collected all of the flowers and balloons, “Naruto-chan, where do you want me to put this?”

 

“Itachi, I’ll be fine,” the blonde woman snatched his hands away from her blankets, and clasped them in her own. Despite the clammy tint to her skin, Naruto Namikaze-Uchiha looked radiant, as she smiled at her husband. “Kurama promised to reinforce the seal and heal any internal scarring. Mikoto, can you put them by the window? And I fully trust- er, Komatsu-san?- to take care of me.” 

 

“Well,  _ I  _ don’t trust a civilian to be taking care of this,” a handsome young man complained from the side of the bed, “Sure you don’t want me to get a medic-nin, Naruto? I can even ask- ow! Hyuuga!”

 

“Get the fuck out of my way, Sasuke!” Hinata Hyuuga growled, before assuming a sweet smile, “Now, Naruto-chan, remember to take deep breaths, and don’t worry about crushing Itachi’s hand. He needs to suffer during the childbirth process too, after all.” 

 

“I don’t think that’ll be necessary, Hinata-chan,” Naruto sweat dropped, before getting a stroke of inspiration. “You know what would really help me though? If someone could go check on Ero-jiji. I think he’s started celebrating early, and now he’s in a drunken stupor. It’s worrying me.”

 

“I’m still collecting wagers people!” one messy-haired Uchiha shouted, “We have 12-15 odds on the baby being a boy, 18-6 of blue eyes, 4-11 of Itachi fainting sometime during the childbirth-”

 

“I can’t believe that baka is stressing you, today of all days!” the Hyuuga was utterly indignant, “Don’t worry, Naruto-chan! I’ll go and straighten him out.”

 

“I should probably go with her, and keep Jiraiya-san’s tenketsu safe,” Shino muttered, rubbing at his eyes, and grinning tearfully at the blonde, “We’ll be right back, Naruto. I want you to listen to everything that the midwife says.”

 

“After all of these years, you would think that I could do that, without having to be told,” the bewhiskered woman grinned, “I’ll be good.”

 

“Why are all of these people here?” Fugaku Uchiha complained, “This is a private Uchiha birth.”

 

“The baby will be a Namikaze and Uzumaki, too,” another voice answered cheerfully, and Chiaki’s attention was drawn to a masked, silver-haired man on the window sill, “Hello, Naruto-chan! Sorry, I’m late. I found mysterious instructions on my grocery list, which led me on a wild cat chase, that got interrupted by a fallen cabbage cart-”

 

“We don’t care, Kakashi-sempai,” Itachi interrupted, his frazzled nerves displayed in the brief lapse of courtesy, “Kindly move from the window sill, so that the others can enter.”

 

It was then that Chiaki’s eyes started bugging out, when not one, or two, or three, but almost a full dozen shinobi and kunoichi jumped through the fifth-story window. They handed their gifts over to the dark-haired woman, as men and women of all clans and facial features began to mill around the spacious (but rapidly diminishing in space) hospital room. The brunette woman could even see other individuals hanging around the other buildings outside, that couldn’t enter due to the limited room.

 

When she saw two men with bowl cuts, bushy eyebrows, and tight green jumpsuits, literally kickflip their way in though, Chiaki reached her limit.

 

“Okay, that’s enough!” the brunette nurse said forcefully. When no one’s attention turned to her, she withdrew the whistle that all medical professionals were given, and blew it. The piercing noise made her the focus of attention, especially of several pairs of spinning red eyes, and that almost made the nurse shrink back. Then she remembered that she was Chiaki Komatsu, and this was her damn job!

 

“Naruto-san will be going into contractions soon,” her voice minutely trembled, but she squared her shoulders and forged on. “I will only allow two other people in the room during this process. Uchiha-san is allowed to stay, as her husband, but I suggest that the rest of you decide the other choice amongst yourself. OUTSIDE! Because I need to rearrange the necessary equipment!” 

 

The brunette nurse watched with some astonishment as, with minimal grumbling and dirty looks, the vastly more powerful shinobi and kunoichi followed her orders. When the room was finally cleared, she hurried forward, and visually scanned the laying blonde woman. 

 

“That was kind of awesome, Chiaki-san!” Naruto complimented, making the brunette flush red.

 

“Indeed,” her husband added, “Very impressive, Komatsu-san.”

 

“I-It was nothing,” Chiaki replied, fumbling with the wires, as she caught the woman’s stunning eyes and the man’s handsome smile. The nurse had heard about the couple’s charisma, but this was the first time that she had garnered such attention from two of the world’s most powerful ninja.

 

‘ _ They’re going to have such a beautiful baby, _ ’ the young woman thought, inwardly giggling. As she arranged the machine, the nurse was ignorant of the argument brewing outside.

 

“My first grandchild is being born, and I  _ will _ be there to see him or her brought to the world!”

 

“I actually have some experience as a medic. I can be of greater assistance to Naruto then Sasuke.”

 

“Of course, I should be the one in there. Aniki needs someone to support him.”

 

“What does Itachi need support for? Naruto-chan is the one giving birth, so I should be there for her!”

 

“My Mangekyou Sharingan could subdue the Kyuubi if it becomes necessary…”

 

“Kurama won’t be doing anything! You couldn’t think of any better excuses to be there, Kakashi?”

 

“You’re  _ drunk _ , Jiraiya-san. You’re not able to help anyone right now, much less Naruto.”

 

“‘M notsh drunk. An’ her godfath’r needs to be there, in case, in case- to keep Itashi from doing anyshing bad!”

 

“You do understand that Naruto giving birth means that my son has already slept with her?”

 

“Why do you sound so smug about that, Fugaku?”

 

“Ugh, this is all so troublesome. I can’t believe you dragged me here, Choji.”

 

The one voice that wasn’t involved in the shouting match was a certain messy-haired teen, that had stepped a few meters away from the arguing ninja. Discretely bringing his hands together, Shisui formed the hand seals for a Kage Bunshin, and then handed his Bunshin some barrier seals.

 

“Everyone calm down!” the Bunshin’s voice rose above the din, and drew the group’s attention, as Shisui snuck back into the room. “This is not a day for infighting and arguments! Two good friends of ours- Naruto and Itachi- are going to have their firstborn in a matter of hours, and we should be celebrating that! This couple values everyone here, and, if only one of us will be allowed into the room, then we can’t make our decision for selfish reasons! We must be noble! We must be honourable! We must be selfless! We must choose the person that will be the most helpful to them, because, and let’s be honest, Itachi really needs the support!”

 

“Shisui, what are you doing with those sealing tags?” Mikoto asked suspiciously, as the teen posted the papers to the door.

 

Shisui ignored her. “And I think we can all agree that the right person for the job is the baby Uchiha’s future godfather. So, goodbye!”

 

Then the Bunshin dispelled itself. A moment later, and sixteen kunai hit the wall behind it.

 

x


	11. Chapter 11

“Itachi-kun, why are you up this early?” Mikoto Uchiha inquired, not bothering to look up from the eggs that she was deftly cracking into the bowl. She already knew that her teenaged son would be taking a seat to the right of Fugaku’s regular chair, normally straight hair mussed from sleep.

 

“I was planning to go to the Hokage’s Tower,” her son replied, voice softer than usual, “The Captain and I wanted to check on the paperwork for our teammate.”

 

“I see,” the dark-haired woman’s smile faded, and she swiftly moved to add more cabbage to his okonomiyaki, “Can you wait a few more minutes? I’ll have breakfast ready soon.”

 

“Yes, Mother. Thank you.” They stayed silent, as the Uchiha Matriarch completed the savoury pancake and passed Itachi his plate. 

 

As he began eating, Mikoto took her cup of tea, and sat across from him. There was a minute frown on her face, as she studied her eldest son. There were faint crease marks on his forehead, suggesting bad dreams, associated with his latest mission. A tired slump to his posture, less visible enjoyment of his favorite breakfast, and not even one baleful look for her blatant staring. Sadly enough, this was an improvement from Itachi’s former expression.

 

‘ _ And now he’ll be ensuring that his friend’s shinobi insurance and death benefits go to the proper beneficiaries, _ ’ Mikoto thought, ‘ _ I’m proud of him, and he’s grown so much, but Itachi-kun’s still my baby boy. At the very least, I want to distract him a little from his morbid thoughts. _ ’

 

“You know, the Sandaime asked me to spend some time with Naruto-chan today,” the mother began cheerfully, pushing a glass of milk forward, as Itachi’s fork momentarily paused, “Is there some okonomiyaki stuck in your throat, Itachi? Have a drink to wash it down.”

 

The teenage boy finished his last bite, before Mikoto took his plate. Seeing the pointed look on his mother’s face, Itachi glowered at the milk, before accepting the glass. His mother barely held back a frustrated sigh. Honestly, what did she do to deserve two such picky eaters as her sons?

 

“I’m sure that we’ll have plenty to talk about,” Mikoto continued, walking around the table to drop a kiss on the top of his head. There was the instinctive recoil of a teenager, before Itachi’s growing maturity reasserted itself, and he accepted the sign of his mother’s affection. “I have so many wonderful stories about her mother, that I can finally share! We were close friends, you know, just as you and Naruto are now. By the way, is there anything you would like me to pass on?”

 

“No, thank you, Mother,” Itachi mumbled, hastily walking out the door. Mikoto internally beamed. There was definitely a flustered look on her normally composed son’s face.

 

“Mom, why did Itachi-niisan leave so quickly?” her other baby boy’s voice drew her attention, and she saw a sleepy, but mildly irate, Sasuke standing by the door. Undoubtedly, he had expected to at least share breakfast with his hero today, since Itachi was less busy in the weekends. 

 

“He had some important shinobi business to attend to, sweetheart,” Mikoto ushered the younger boy into his seat, before Sasuke-chan’s face could do much more than fall in disappointment. There were two types of business that often drew Itachi’s attention- shinobi work and clan duties- and the former meant that Sasuke was forbidden from asking more questions.

 

“Why did you make so much food?” Sasuke asked, instead. Unlike his brother, Sasuke preferred to wake up during the early morning hours. Itachi, in comparison, would be working until a three o’clock limit, and then cling to his bedsheets until noon. The standard ANBU schedule worked well for him.

 

“I’m going to take some of this food to the hospital today, Sasuke-chan,” Mikoto ignored her son’s grimace. When he was old enough to reach the high cupboards, she would drop the term of endearment. “I’ll be meeting your godsister today.”

 

“I have a godsister?” Sasuke parroted. This was news to him.

 

“Yes, she’s an orphan, and the daughter of my best friend. Due to political and personal reasons- and yes, Sasuke-chan, those are also private- I was unable to assume guardianship of her, as a child,” Mikoto concisely explained. “Those circumstances have changed, partially due to the medical incident, and, while she’s an emancipated minor now, I can be more involved in her life. This is our first meeting, which is why I’m allowing you to play over at Takeo-chan’s house, but you’ll spend some time with her later.”

 

“I have a godsister?” Sasuke repeated, and then considered the statement. “She’s the daughter of your best friend? That ‘Shina’ woman?”

 

“Kushina,” the dark-haired woman corrected, awarding her son with a smile for remembering the protagonist of several early bedtime stories, “Kushina Uzumaki. I believe that you know her daughter?”

 

This time, Sasuke was shocked enough to stop sorting out his cherry tomatoes. “The  _ dobe _ ?”

 

“Now, Sasuke-chan, there’s no need for that kind of language,” she scolded, “I know that you have a- let’s say,  _ tenuous _ \- relationship with Naruto-chan, but she’s the daughter of my best friend, and my future daughter-in-law.”

 

“Mom, I  _ told  _ you that she’s not one of my fangirls,” the dark-haired boy made a face, “Are you sure she’s the daughter of Kushina? I mean, your stories made her out to be so cool, but Naruto is the deadlast of our class. All she does is play pranks… oh. Well, I guess that’s something she inherited from her mother?”

 

“Yes,” Mikoto nodded happily, “Kushina was a consummate prankster, and Naruto-chan is definitely her daughter. And I know that she’s not your fangirl, sweetheart. She’s going to marry your brother.”

 

“Itachi-niisan?” Sasuke gaped at his mother.

 

“They’re very good friends, and will likely become more in the future,” the Uchiha Matriarch responded happily. “Therefore, I would like you to be a little more courteous to her, in the future. You two will be spending plenty of time together- Itachi-kun already invited her over to the compound!- and I plan to invite her to dinners every weekend. While I don’t expect immediate friendship, you  _ will  _ display the composure, good manners, and etiquette expected of my sons. Am I understood, Sasuke-chan?”   

 

“Itachi-niisan?!”

 

“I also want you to be considerate of your brother’s courtship,” Mikoto lectured, “Itachi-kun will need both space and time to win Naruto-chan’s heart. Don’t be afraid to give them some time alone, every now and them. Use constraint, when you ask for his time. Get to know her a little better, and highlight some of Itachi-kun’s better traits, if you can.”

 

_ “Itachi-niisan?!” _

 

“As a fellow Academy student, you’re better placed to gather intelligence than anyone else in the family,” his mother pressed, “So, if you see  _ anyone _ else show romantic interest, then you should tell me, or your cousin, Shisui, immediately. And stop cherry-picking those tomatoes, young man. Did you think I would let you skip out on the rest of your breakfast, after the tomatoes were gone?”

 

The final rebuke was familiar, and Sasuke broke out of his stupefied reaction enough, to sneak the last of his tomatoes below the blasted omelette and the barely tolerated steamed vegetables. His mind spun wildly, assimilating the information given, as his mother returned to packaging the remainder of the food. Sasuke was so lost in his thoughts, that he didn’t even remember to complain when Mikoto leaned down to kiss the top of his head.

 

“I have to go visit Naruto-chan now,” Mikoto picked up the hamper of food, and gave one final smile to her son. “Be good, Sasuke-chan, and don’t cause Aunt Mori any trouble. I love you.”

 

“Love you too,” Sasuke replied automatically, mind working quickly.  _ Itachi-niisan?! _

 

Mikoto Uchiha hummed cheerfully, passing out the occasional wave and acknowledging nod to passersby, as she walked over to Konoha General. She didn’t need to ask the receptionist for the room number, since the former Jounin had swung by last night, when the Uzumaki was asleep, to check on her. Instead, she eagerly stepped into Room 2B, and let her eyes feast on the blonde patient.

 

_ ‘She’s the perfect copy of Minato-kun,’  _ the Uchiha marvelled, a little regretfully, as sunshine yellow hair and ocean blue eyes stared at her. Then, her chakra sensing ability echoed back. ‘ _ Almost the perfect copy. Her chakra-scape has every hallmark of the Uzumaki Clan. And there’s Kushina’s button nose and oval-shaped face. _ ’

 

“Itachi’s mom?” Naruto-chan’s voice was similar to her mother’s as well, blithe and carefree. 

 

“Yes, Itachi’s my son,” Mikoto replied, more hesitant. There was some anxiety now, because-  _ oh, kami _ , she hadn’t thought this through, had she? This was an almost eight-year-old girl, Naruto-chan didn’t know anything about her, and how could she expect the little girl’s forgiveness for abandoning her for all of these years. This was a mistake. She should-

 

“I liked your rice balls,” Naruto-chan said awkwardly. “They were oysters?”

 

“Yes,” Mikoto answered quickly, grabbing on to the topic of conversation, “Your mother taught me. Ocean-based designs were very popular with her clan.”

 

Those familiar blue eyes widened. “You knew my mother?”

 

“Kushina Uzumaki,” Mikoto said, feeling indescribably guilty at the hopeful expression on the blonde’s face, “Was my best friend. We met when we were only six years old, and were as close as sisters since. We were each other’s confidante, training partner, maid of honor, and- eventually- godmother candidate. She chose me to be your godmother when you were born.”

 

There were a few hand-wringing minutes when Naruto Uzumaki didn’t say anything. Then sunshine yellow hair tipped to the side, as Naruto-chan cocked her head, and narrowed her rich blue eyes. “You couldn’t see me?”

 

Mikoto’s hearted clenched. “No.”

 

She did not expect for the blonde girl to shrug at the answer. “Okay. Can you tell me about her now?”   

 

_ ‘Minato never got angry over things that he couldn’t change,’  _ the dark-haired woman noted, taking a relieved seat by the Uzumaki’s bedside, ‘ _ Kushina never held a person’s past mistakes against them. _ ’

 

“On the day that I first met Kushina Uzumaki,” Mikoto began, “My mother forced me to wear a particularly scratchy formal dress, in a horrible shade of puce. She told me that I was meeting a foreign clan heiress, and was expected to make a good impression. Naturally, Kushina chose to walk in, wearing an oversized men’s dress shirt, red shorts, and muddy adventure boots…”  

 

x

 

Naruto Uzumaki’s coma and subsequent recovery covered the second half of the week, and fell into the weekend, allowing her to be ready for the Academy on Monday. Still a little wobbly on her feet, and reluctant to go to school, the blonde took her time getting ready, until a messy-haired teen appeared at her door. Disregarding her panicked shouts, Shisui Uchiha swept her off her feet, and used half-a-dozen consecutive Shunshin, to get her to school before the bell rang. When they finally arrived in the courtyard, the Uchiha teen gently lowered her down, and- after Naruto’s head stopped spinning- got kicked in the shins.

 

“That was kidnapping, you jerk! Oh, I think my brain is scrambled,” Naruto moaned, grabbing her head, “Ow… Don’t do that again.”

 

Then the blonde looked around the courtyard, filled with wide-eyed classmates, and huffed. “Thank you for bringing me to school, Shisui.”

 

“No problem,” the Uchiha replied, grinning, “But why didn’t you like it? Was it because there’s _ another  _ Uchiha, you’d like to be held by?” Shisui quickly performed another Shunshin before her feet could reach him again, leaving behind a spluttering, red-faced blonde girl and a courtyard of shocked students. All except for Sasuke Uchiha, who merely facepalmed.  

 

Unlike the Uzumaki though, Ino Yamanaka had jumped out of her bed, bright-eyed and bitter-smiled in the morning light. She chose to dress in her favorite purple top, brushed her platinum blonde hair back, and took a crisp apple from the kitchen for breakfast. Her mother, Kimiko, was already up, and gave her a curt greeting, which Ino ignored. The young girl also refused to acknowledge the reminder to come home directly after school; it’s not like she had forgotten her unfair punishment!

 

Instead, Ino pasted a smile on her face, arrived early to school, and started talking to one of her many acquaintances. Who spoke to another girl, and yet another, before certain rumors began to spread across the campus. That was why, when Shisui arrived with Naruto Uzumaki in his arms, there were plenty of whispers in the air.

 

“Broke into the Uchiha Compound and stole Sasuke-kun’s boxers…”

 

“...got rejected, and tried to get his brother’s attention instead, to make him jealous.”

 

“Have you heard what she did? What a floozy.”

 

“Well, she’s obviously got no morals if she’s going through his underwear. Not surprised that she-”

 

“-seduced the other boy. That was why he brought her to the school-”

 

“...absent for the last few days. They say that she was in a hospital, but it’s actually because the Uchiha were punishing-”

 

“I know! She’s such a whore. She sneaked into Sasuke-kun’s bedroom when he was asleep…”

 

“-in a hospital, because she tried to kill herself after the Uchiha rejected her.”

 

“Who wouldn’t? Sasuke-kun must have felt so violated, when he found her rummaging through his underwear.”

 

Although these rumors spread quickly throughout class, there were some people who were unaware of them. Naruto Uzumaki was one such person, since she was busy worrying about her future lesson with Itachi, and thinking about how nice it was for Iruka-sensei to welcome her back to class. Neither Shino Aburame nor Hinata Hyuuga had social contacts that were willing the share the rumors with them. As for Sasuke Uchiha, he studiously ignored everything that his fangirls giggled over, and inadvertently led credence to the rumors, as he focused an intense stare on the oblivious blonde. 

 

Naruto  _ did _ feel the judgemental glares aimed at her, but those weren’t new to the Uzumaki.

 

Ino watched, with a mixed feeling of pride and frustration, as her rumors began to circulate. She was smug, when Ami-chan deliberately stepped on the Uzumaki’s foot on the way to class, and when Rika-chan laughed derisively, as the blonde walked by. She was angry, when Naruto’s main reaction was to scribble intently in her notebook, and occasionally exchange hushed mutters with her friends. Her revenge was working, but not nearly as well as she had hoped.

 

It was Hinata, who finally heard the unkind words spoken about one of her best friends. 

 

“What do you think the Uzumaki is writing all day?” a female voice inquired. 

 

“Probably more plans to sneak into Sasuke-kun’s bed!” The resulting chortles hid the blue-haired girl’s gasp. Hinata quietly pressed back against the bathroom stall, and focused on the conversation.

 

“Think we should sneak her plans away?” the first voice spoke again, and Hinata frowned when she recognized how familiar it was. A classmate?

 

“Why not? She’ll be totally freaked out when she learns that her secret plans are known to everyone!”

 

“If we’re lucky, the baka will be embarrassed enough to try killing herself again.” 

 

_ ‘To say s-such things,’ _ Hinata thought, clenching her hands. Her breathing quickened, and she forced chakra into her eyes. There was a moment of disorientation, before the Byakugan activated and an almost-perfect, spherical vision assaulted her mind. ‘ _ There’s more than two of them! _ ’

 

Deactivating her Byakugan, Hinata placed one chakra-laden foot against the bathroom stall, and the other on the wall, as she pulled herself out of the enclosed space. Then, clinging on to the walls, the blue-haired girl studied the people, who had just threatened her best female friend.

 

The Hyuuga recognized Naoki and, a cinder-haired girl that she vaguely thought was named Anzo, who had spoken. The third girl had pale pink hair past her shoulder blades, and sat directly in front of Hinata during lessons. Sakura had an uncomfortable look on her face, as the others spoke, but she didn’t argue against them either.

 

_ ‘Are they the only ones t-talking about this?’ _ Hinata wondered, ‘ _ How did they know that Naruto-chan was in the hospital, and why do they think that she tried to attempt s-suicide? _ ’

 

Movement at the corner of her eye drew her attention down, and Hinata saw the pink-haired girl lift her head. Sakura’s jade green eyes widened, and her mouth began to open, but then she paused. Hinata had activated her Byakugan again, and the glare that the intimidating dojutsu formed made every warning bell in the Haruno’s mind ring. 

 

Sakura stayed silent. A few minutes later, and the three girls left the bathroom. A moment after that, Hinata somersaulted back on the ground, feeling over half of her limited chakra reserves diminished. Had the previous conversation not worried her so, she would have been more dismayed that they were scheduled to practice the Bunshin in class today.  

 

‘ _ They won’t be able to steal Naruto-chan’s notebook,’  _ Hinata knew, _ ‘But those rumors are more worrying. Shino-kun and Naruto-chan will never pay them attention, because they don’t care what other people say, but those words could really damage Naruto-chan’s reputation! I need to do something.’ _

 

As the Hyuuga hurried back to class, she wondered how she would conduct her investigation into the rumors, and whether or not Sakura Haruno needed more incentives to stay quiet. Hinata didn’t like to use her family’s reputation- because her own lacked any intimidation whatsoever- but Naruto-chan was so vulnerable to rumors. And if she was going to intimidate Haruno-san anyway, then maybe she should ask some questions about why people were talking about Naruto-chan this way?

 

x

 

Hinata Hyuuga concluded her investigation with the knowledge that Ino Yamanaka was a terrible person, Sakura Haruno had a softer spine than she did, and Kiba Inuzuka had the decency to scoff at the suicide rumors of her best friend. It may have only been due to his insistence that his nose would have picked up on such depressed thoughts, but the blue-haired girl appreciate it, nonetheless. There were other members of the class that didn’t say such terrible things, but Nara-san, Akimichi-san, and Uchiha-san seemed to be too immersed in their own world, to know of them.

 

When Hinata gathered enough information to summarize the situation, she tentatively approached the subject with her best friends. As she had feared, Naruto was mildly upset and Shino more-than-mildly indignant, but neither knew how to counter the negative press. The former didn’t have the appropriate social training for this kind of issue, while the latter’s clan training focused on ignoring them. Hinata had reluctantly argued against retaliatory pranking, since that would only worsen the situation. 

 

_ ‘Now what should I do?’  _ Hinata wondered, ‘ _ I’m not popular enough to stand up to Ino, and the others don’t have enough respect for me, to listen anyway. Maybe Father will have an idea.’ _

 

Her father had kindly listened to her concerns before, even showing interest in her petty jealousy of Itachi Uchiha. This had come as a surprise to the painfully shy girl, but she was glad that Hiashi Hyuuga was showing more interest in her life now. He had been an attentive father for most of her life, but ever since Mother had died giving birth to Hanabi, her Father had become withdrawn and cold. The last year had been lonely for the young girl, but, with her new friends and her father’s renewed interest, Hinata’s confidence was slowly rising.

 

“F-father?” Not enough to stop stuttering entirely though. Not when she was about to initiate such a difficult conversation. “M-may I have s-some of your t-time?”

 

“Hinata? Yes, you may come in,” Hiashi replied, “Let me set some of my paperwork aside.”

 

The blue-haired girl nearly beamed, as she carefully stepped over the polished bamboo tiles of the Clan Head’s office. Hinata sat on a ready mat, arms and legs correctly positioned for a proper heiress, and focused on her father’s unactivated Byakugan. She knew that the pupil-less, white eyes of her clan were scary to some, but they had always brought comfort to her.

 

“Father, there is a s-situation at school, that I request your g-guidance for,” Hinata employed the formal language that the adult Hyuuga preferred, “T-there are some unkind r-rumors about my f-friend, Naruto Uzumaki…”

 

Hinata explained the situation to the best of her ability, and then sat respectfully on her mat, as Hiashi formulated his response. It was not what she had hoped. “Have you considered asking Itachi Uchiha to intervene on the Uzumaki’s behalf?”

 

Hinata’s mouth formed an expression that was _ not  _ a pout. “I do not believe that he w-would be the best p-person to help Naruto-chan.”

 

Hiashi’s mouth quirked up. “While I’m glad that you have the proper sensibilities to be scornful of our Uchiha rivals, jealousy is unbecoming of the Hyuuga heiress, Hinata.”

 

“As an o-outsider, he w-would not be able to e-effectively c-challenge the rumors,” Hinata replied stubbornly. Her father nodded to this point.

 

“The solution does not necessarily have to be a direct one,” Hiashi chided, “Hinata, I would like to tell you a story about two old friends of mine. Would you care to hear it?”

 

_ ‘Not at all,’ _ the Hyuuga child thought sourly, but knew that it was a rhetorical question. “Yes, Father.”

 

“There were once two people that, for the sake of this story, shall be called Minoru and Kikyo,” Hiashi’s eyes gained that faraway look that his daughter associated with Uncle Hizashi and her mother, Hiromi. These friends must have been deceased. “Minoru and Kikyo met as fellow Academy students, but while Minoru fell in love with her at first sight, Kikyo was indifferent to him. More than indifferent, actually. She once knocked him out and stuck him to the classroom ceiling. It took almost four hours for the sensei to deactivate the seal keeping him there.”

 

Hinata stayed silent, as her father recounted the story of the determined pursuit of Minoru and the mischievous evasion of Kikyo, and the many antics involved with them. To the young girl, it almost sounded like one of those folklores about the handsome hunter chasing after a Yokai maiden. Her interest was fully caught when her father reached the climax of his story, when the brave Minoru saved the kidnapped Kikyo, and finally won her heart. 

 

“There are two morals to this story, Hinata. The first one is that you cannot rely solely on Kumo nin to move your love life along. Even after Minoru won her heart, he continued his pursuit of Kikyo, in order to show her how much he loved her,” Hiashi said, “The second one is that sometimes Fate will intervene to give another Kikyo, a Minoru of her very own. Do you understand what I mean?”

 

“No, Father,” Hinata answered, confused. How was this supposed to discourage her? Didn’t Minoru beat the odds, and win Kikyo’s heart, in the end?

 

“When Minoru saved Kikyo, he created a special trust between them that others could not breach,” her father explained, “Sometimes, a Kikyo needs to be saved from physical dangers, but other times, the issue is less obvious. And sometimes, a Minoru arrives too late, because one has already stepped in to be the hero. Do you understand?”

 

Hinata looked down. “Itachi Uchiha isn’t Naruto-chan’s Minoru, Father.”

 

“Isn’t he?” Hiashi laid a gentle hand on her shoulder, “Her danger was isolation and loneliness, and he stepped in to save her from that. Tell me, does she seem to care for him?”

 

Hinata considered how happy Naruto-chan had been when she talked about her early notes, and how preoccupied she was today, when she considered her upcoming lesson. The Hyuuga’s heart fell, and Hiashi read the truth in his little girl’s teary eyes.

 

“I would advise against risking your steady friendship for an uncertain romance now, but who knows? In a year or more, the circumstances may change, and be more favorable for you,” the Hyuuga Head stood up, and beckoned her closer. “Even if they do not, there will be other Kikyo’s in the world. I believe that Fate, an open mind, and a kind heart will guide you to the right one, eventually.”

 

“N-not like h-her,” Hinata sniffled, “No one l-like  _ her! _ ”

 

“In the bloom of first love, that is a simple assumption to make, Hinata,” the older Hyuuga drew her into a hug, “Come, we shall have a cup of hot chocolate and those cinnamon buns that you like.”

 

“C-can we eat w-with Hanabi-chan?” the blue-haired girl, hiccuped.

 

Hiashi hesitated. He had not seen his younger daughter for nearly five months, ever since Hiromi… “Yes. Yes, I believe that we should.”

 

x

 

After the Sunday morning that his mother had spent upbraiding his entire world, Sasuke was in a state of constant consideration. His brilliant, talented, and strong older brother couldn’t possibly be courting the deadlast, could he? She was the deadlast! Naruto Uzumaki was loud, brash, careless, ill-mannered, and lacked any respect for her education. Sasuke had never considered his brother’s possible girlfriend before, but, as he thought about it now, the messy-haired, orange-loving joke of his class did not come to mind.

 

Not as the first choice. Or the second, third, and basically any choice, unless every other single girl was dead. And even then, Sasuke would have expected Itachi-niisan to remain celibate and alone.

 

His mother was convinced Naruto Uzumaki would be her daughter-in-law though, and while some of his mother’s claims could be outlandish, she never lied. Mikoto Uchiha stated that her eldest son and the deadlast of Sasuke’s class were good friends, and therefore, they must be.

 

Since it was difficult to reconcile his mother’s aversion to lying with his brother’s courtship of the dobe, Sasuke resolved to observe the girl. Falling into his typical habit of ignoring his classmates- though the fangirls were particularly giggly and irritating today- the younger Uchiha son stared at Naruto. By the end of the day, he concluded that she was loud, brash, careless, ill-mannered, and lacked any respect for her education.

 

But there were also moments, when Sasuke saw more. When she stuck ten leaves to each of her wiggling toes- the hardest part of the body to channel chakra to- and waved them at the Hyuuga, she was skilled. When she thoughtlessly grabbed extra worksheets for her friends, and swiftly glared at the boy mocking the Aburame, she was loyal. And when Itachi picked him up from school, waved at her, and caused her entire face to light up? She was beautiful.

 

Sasuke still didn’t believe that his older brother was courting Naruto Uzumaki. Itachi-niisan was too focused on his work, didn’t even consider romance, and was too old for her anyway. Not to mention, that he would definitely have told Sasuke, if he had ever wanted to court one of his classmates. 

 

However, there was something between Itachi-nii and the Academy deadlast. The deadlast that was his mother’s goddaughter, and likely to be a frequent visitor to their home. The deadlast that was a single girl that his brother was willing to spend time with, and cared for. There was no romance there, but Itachi-nii simply didn’t  _ have _ any other female friends. She could become his sister-in-law one day.

 

‘ _ Of all the people that Itachi-nii could have chosen, _ ’ Sasuke mentally sighed, following his brother home. The second day was another pattern of the first, until a determined, but clearly reluctant, Hinata Hyuuga approached them, and asked for a moment to talk with Itachi-nii.

 

_ ‘She doesn't have a crush on him too, does she?’ _ the younger Uchiha thought, worried. He was polite enough to step several feet away, though he refused to move his eyes from the two heirs. It was a public area, so the actions were acceptable, if borderline rude. _ ‘No. I- I think she actually doesn’t like him! I never thought I would meet a girl that didn’t like Itachi-nii.’ _

 

Trust a Hyuuga to be prejudiced against his wonderful brother. Father was right, when he said that the Hyuuga Clan lacked common sense.

 

Sasuke wondered what the Hyuuga wanted to talk to his brother about. Itachi-nii broached the subject, as they were taking their shoes off. “Sasuke, have you heard any of the rumors currently spreading throughout your class?”

 

Sasuke shook his head in the negative. “I don’t listen to rumors, Itachi-nii.”

 

“That’s a good policy to adopt,” the older brother’s words made the younger one puff up with pride, “With the addendum that you keep track of them, but don’t believe them, without gathering your own intel. Hyuuga-san has informed me that one of your classmates, Ino Yamanaka, has spread cruel and dishonest rumors about Naruto.”

 

_ ‘Itachi-nii refers to her by her given name.’ _ Sasuke knew how important honorifics were to his older brother. He kept that thought in mind, as he listened to the rest of the information that he had to share. Even though he didn’t care for the Uzumaki, even Sasuke was disgusted by what he had heard. 

 

“Can you intervene on her behalf?” Itachi-nii asked, surprising his little brother again. Itachi-nii rarely needed his help for anything, and, when he did, it was minor tasks that were requested mainly to make Sasuke feel useful. This wasn’t minor, and the younger Uchiha knew that he would accept, if only because it would make his brother feel better.

 

Still, he asked another question. “Is she really your friend?”

 

Itachi nodded, a soft smile crossing his face. Sasuke Uchiha became convinced that their mother’s matchmaking hopes were not so far-fetched, after all.

 

On Sunday, his mother dropped some of the most surprising news in Sasuke’s life. On Monday, he silently observed the Uzumaki girl, and secretly admitted that there were valid points involved. On Tuesday, he gained confirmation from Itachi-nii himself, and learned that some idiot fangirl was attacking the godsister he never wanted, but was still important to his mother and brother. On Wednesday, he waited until Kasumi muttered ‘whore’ under her breath, before intervening.

 

“What did you say?” The entire room, even Iruka-sensei, stared at him. Sasuke Uchiha was not one to disrupt classes, and had never used such an angry tone against his classmates before. The girl in question, with a ginger-coloured afro and squinted eyes, blushed deep red.

 

“I didn’t mean you, Sasuke-kun!” Kasumi refuted, clearly surprised, but pleased to gain his attention. “I was talking about the Uzumaki-baka! I think it’s unacceptable for her to have stolen your boxers!”

 

The dark-haired boy glared irritably at her. “I know who you were insulting, and I’m angry on  _ Naruto’s  _ behalf. She’s a friend on my family, and was tricked into stealing my clothes, by certain unscrupulous people.” 

 

Since Ino had apparently been showing his boxers off for days, and Sasuke was currently looking at the pale Yamanaka, there was no question about who he was referring to.

 

“I thought since she sneaked into your house,” Kasumi simpered, shrinking back.

 

“Don’t insult the Uchiha Compound’s security!” Sasuke snapped back, “Did you think that a simple Academy student could get into my house, unless she was invited in? My mother was aware that she needed the boxers for something, and decided to let her take them. She has a lot of trust in Naruto.”

 

And at least half of that statement had been true.

 

“Sasuke, do you really think that this is the time and place to have this discussion?” Iruka interrupted, giving him a warning look, “Please sit down. Since this is your first infraction, I’ll waive off a punishment, but you will get detention, if you continue.”

 

Sasuke nodded, but surprised his sensei when he continued talking. “I accept the detention, Sensei.”

 

This would be his first ever detention, but, for some reason, Sasuke suspected that his family would reward him for it. His coal-black eyes scanned the room, once again. The Yamanaka was ashen-faced, the Nara mildly surprised, the Inuzuka approving, the Hyuuga reluctantly pleased, and the Uzumaki utterly shocked. He wanted to end this now, so he looked directly at the anxious Ino, and continued his lecture of Kasumi.

 

“There have been some seduction, rejection, and suicide-related rumors running around about one of our classmates recently. I’m here to tell you, that none of those rumors are true, and that I am willing to fight anyone who claims otherwise,” Sasuke ranted. “Naruto Uzumaki is my mother’s goddaughter, my older brother’s friend, and one of the only two girls in this class, that had the common decency to  _ not _ be a fangirl…” 

 

x

 

The funeral had been private, solemn, and closed-casket. Minoru was from a civilian family, and only his elderly mother, older sister, brother-in-law and two nieces, filled the family asile. For their benefit, the skewered throat was hidden by a thin plank of polished wood, that couldn’t disguise the glassy-eyed corpse that filled Itachi’s eyes.

 

Minoru was popular. Friendly, cheerful, and always ready with a (often inappropriate) joke, many ninja attended the wake. When it was over, they decided to head to a local bar, and toast to the memories of the brunette shinobi, that flirted with any pretty Chuunin that caught his eye. Shisui had elected to go along, but Itachi refused. He wasn’t much of a drinker, and couldn’t muster the energy needed to tolerate the press of people, after the funeral.

 

He wanted to go home, and listen to Sasuke boast about his detention, to their father’s mixed pride and horror. Eat some of his mother’s home-cooked meals. Maybe read some of Naruto’s earlier notes, to remind him that he wasn’t the worst scumbag on the face of the Elemental Lands.

 

Naruto’s words had made an impression, and Yugao, Shisui, and even Kakashi-sempai had mercilessly hammered it home. Minoru’s mother thanked him for arranging all of the shinobi-related paperwork. Intellectually, Itachi knew that he wasn’t to blame, but survivor’s guilt was a difficult matter to ignore.

 

He turned to the silent street that led towards the Uchiha Compound, when Itachi’s ears perked up. A moment later, and he was perched in a building, several feet away. Another man flickered into being next to him. Itachi couldn’t manage to hide his shock.

 

_ ‘Another teleportation jutsu? And a Mangekyou Sharingan?’  _ His own eyes flared in response. 

 

“Itachi Uchiha,” the man greeted him, with a gravelly, artificial voice. He wore a black cloak inscribed with red cloud, a spiralled orange mask, and had a single spinning Sharingan in his eye. “I’ve wanted to speak to you for a long time.” Itachi stayed silent.

 

“One of my most talented descendants, and a possible subordinate of great potential,” the man continued, seemingly indifferent to the kunai that Itachi drew, “Proficient in ninjutsu, genjutsu, taijutsu, and shurikenjutsu. Even Chuunin-level competence with iryo ninjutsu, fuuinjutsu, and kenjutsu. Mastery of the Suiton and Katon elements, and beginning to learn the Futon element. A summoner of the crow contract. A wielder of the Mangekyou Sharingan.”

 

Itachi refused to speak, and the masked individual kept talking.

 

“You were such a pacifistic, gentle child that I doubted you would ever reach the stage of the Mangekyou,” the man said, “I arranged that test for you, and I must admit, that you have surpassed my every expectation. Well done, Itachi.”

 

This got a reaction. “You ordered those Kiri shinobi to attack us?”  _ You killed Minoru?    _

 

The narrowed eyes and tense body, caused the man to chuckle. It was a deep and bitter sound, but more realistic than any tone, he had voiced so far. “I am not surprised that this would be your reaction. You have always been an aloof child, but your unexpected affection for the jinchuuriki changed you. As love has for many people, over countless generations.  The moment people come to know love, they run the risk of carrying hate.”

 

“What do you want from me?” Itachi asked.

 

The man fell silent for a moment, and then clapped his hands together. The sudden noise unnerved Itachi, but the dark-haired teen refused to show it.

 

“I think the better question would be, ‘what can I give you’?” the masked stranger responded, “In this case, I intend to destroy the village, capture the Bijuu, and establish a new world order. If you join me, then I will spare your immediate family and cousin. I will grant you a place in my new world, and one final prize.”

 

“Kushina Uzumaki died after her Bijuu was extracted, but if you join me, I shall save her daughter’s life, and gift her to you. If you reject my offer, than the Kyuubi will be released in Konoha, within a week’s time. You alone have the power to spare Naruto Uzumaki’s death.”

 

x


	12. Chapter 12

On the morning of the 21st of May, the citizens of Konoha woke up to some shocking news. Last night, the Uchiha Compound was infiltrated by a masked ninja, that was previously marked by the deceased Yondaime Hokage as the man responsible for the Kyuubi Attack. This man was an S-ranked ninja that attempted to destroy one of the Leaf’s pillars of strength, by massacring every man, woman, and child within the Uchiha Clan. Fortunately, he was intercepted by the clan’s heir, Itachi Uchiha, who was able to briefly hold him back, as reinforcements were called in from the clan. The masked man was forced to flee, but not before killing several prominent Uchiha, including most of the Elders, a few Jounin and Chuunin, and two male civilians. A contingent of ANBU also tragically lost their lives in this battle. 

 

In the aftermath of the attack, Fugaku Uchiha barricaded all civilian and children within the compound gates, as the clan mourned its losses. Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Sandaime Hokage, moved the masked man from the unofficial list of Konoha’s greatest enemies, to the Konoha Bingo Book under a 350 million ryo bounty, dead or alive. The valiant defenders of the clan, such as Itachi and Shisui Uchiha, were currently recuperating in the Konoha General Hospital.

 

The news filtered out of the Hokage’s Tower when the sky was still streaked with the pinkish-blue rays of dawn, so Hiruzen wasn’t surprised that it was barely noon before Danzo stormed in.

 

“Hiruzen,” the bandaged man’s wooden cane authoritatively thumped the floor as he scowled at his old teammate, “I need to speak to you.”

 

“How fortunate that my schedule has an opening for lunch,” the Sandaime replied dryly, “You may as well talk now. I’ll be swamped with visitors and paperwork for the rest of the day.” Ignoring the disgruntled look on his advisor’s face, Hiruzen took out the boxed lunch that his chef had made, and broke apart his chopsticks.

 

“Didn’t you bring Homura and Koharu with you?” Hiruzen added, mildly disappointed. “I don’t want to schedule for three different screaming matches Danzo. I expected you to be more efficient about this.”

 

“Fortunately, we seem to have the same mind about this,” Homura’s gravelly voice intoned, as the other two Elders entered the room. “What in the name of all the Kami-damned fires were you thinking, Hiruzen?”

 

“You’ll have to be more specific than that, Homura,” Hiruzen replied, lifting his bento box and moving to the dark red and bronze sitting area for the Council, “How have I disappointed you today?”

 

Koharu frowned. “This isn’t a time for your antics, Hiruzen. How could you not inform us about this masked stranger that released the Kyuubi?”

 

_ ‘Because I didn’t know anything about him,’ _ the Hokage deadpanned mentally. “We knew that someone attacked Kushina Uzumaki during her childbirth process, and released the Kyuubi. Minato had a brief altercation with him, but wasn’t able to draw many identifying details from him. Since he didn’t want to terrify the village with the news of an S-ranked enemy, he classified the information.”

 

“And you didn’t bother to tell us anything before now?” Danzo glowered, “My Ne operatives could have spent the last eight years searching out his identity, and eliminating the threat he posed to Konoha.”

 

“You and I need to have a long talk about that secret army of yours, Danzo,” Hiruzen commented mildly, “I should express my sympathies for the deaths that they have suffered last night.”

 

“A few roots shall gladly wither for the health of the great tree,” the one-eyed man replied stiffly.

 

“Regardless, you haven’t explained why you kept that information classified from  _ us _ ,” Homura said.

 

“It was one of Minato’s final dictates,” Hiruzen explained, “I saw the wisdom in his words, and followed them.” Neither of the male Elders seemed pacified by this, and were opening their mouths to argue, when support came from an unlikely source.

 

“That’s enough, Danzo, Homura,” Koharu’s stern voice rebuked, “We agreed to abide by Minato’s dying wish for his daughter. We could do no less for this.”

 

“Minato had every right to determine his own child’s future,” Homura complained, “But he shouldn’t have withheld valuable intelligence from the elders that served his village for longer than he was alive. It was foolish to disregard our possible counsel in this matter.”

 

“However foolish you may consider him to be, he was our Hokage,” Koharu’s chin lifted up, “Namikaze was our leader when he made that dictate, and Hiruzen chose to honor this. You served under Tobirama-sensei; you know what the rules are. Should our Kage command, we must obey.”

 

Danzo stewed, but Homura relented with a tired sigh. Hiruzen nodded to the elegant woman in gratitude, and received one raised eyebrow in response. “Now that Hiruzen had chosen to reveal the news to all of Konoha though, I am sure that he’ll agree to share the necessary intel with us, his most  trusted Advisors.”

 

_ ‘I see that you still aim for the jugular, Koharu,’ _ the Sandaime mused, with brief fondness. 

 

“As you may have guessed, the information that was revealed to the public wasn’t entirely accurate. The masked man, who identified himself as Madara Uchiha, approached young Itachi with a recruitment offer. I believe the terms were to serve him and receive clemency for his immediate family, best friend, and Naruto Uzumaki, or have the Kyuubi released again,” Hiruzen recounted.

 

“Then young Itachi is courting Minato’s daughter,” Koharu interrupted, “I had thought that to be a wildly popular rumor.”

 

“Really? I haven’t heard of it until today,” Homura commented, “Should we allow an element of an at-risk clan to associate with the jinchuuriki?”

 

“First, Itachi Uchiha’s loyalty to Konoha is unquestionable, as we have proven through his spying activities  _ on his own family, _ ” Hiruzen said flatly, as the two Elders had the grace to look embarrassed, “Second, I have encouraged him to build a friendship with Naruto, and they seem to be getting along well. And finally, I don’t want to see that look on your face, Danzo. We may be meddlesome old men and women, but we haven’t sunk so low as to break apart two children for Konoha’s betterment.”

 

“I would have only discouraged other suitors,” Danzo shrugged, “The Uchiha Clan’s Sharingan would be complemented by the Uzumaki’s vast chakra reserves and rapid healing.”  

 

Hiruzen’s mouth opened and closed soundlessly for a whole minute. “I don’t care. Don’t do that.”

 

“Back to the unconfirmed Madara Uchiha,” Koharu prompted, eager to move the conversation along.

 

The Hokage recovered his aplomb. “Yes, well Itachi requested some time to come to his decision, and then promptly shared the intelligence with me. I decided that the threat was baseless; if the supposed Madara Uchiha wanted to recruit Itachi, then he could have easily instigated the events first, and kept Naruto Uzumaki or Sasuke Uchiha alive to keep Itachi in line. This situation doesn’t match the one from eight years ago. Naruto Uzumaki has a stronger seal, that isn’t weakened from the trials of pregnancy, and keeps the Kyuubi in a coma-like stasis state.”

 

“Instead, we chose to leverage this event, in order to deal with the Uchiha Clan’s coup d’etat,” Hiruzen continued, “Young Itachi agreed to help the masked man, but suggested that they massacre his clan, in order to gain revenge for turning their backs on Madara Uchiha all of those years ago. The main instigators of the rebellion were killed first, and then events occurred similarly to the news released.”

 

Homura nodded thoughtfully. “A sound idea. However, it would be a fair assumption that this Madara Uchiha would want to attack the village on a later date?”

 

“Yes, it seems that we have another Orochimaru,” Hiruzen sighed, considering the prodigal student that he had treated like his own son, “He was dressed in a distinctive black cloak with red clouds that matches reports of at least one other ninja that our ANBU operatives briefly crossed paths with. I believe that a powerful organization, currently existing in the shadows, plans to attack Konoha in the likely-distant future.”   
  


Danzo leaned forward, and his one eye narrowed. “Then we will have to destroy them first?”

 

“Agreed,” the Hokage said grimly, causing all of the other councillors to widen their eyes, “I may desire peace, but this organization is harboring a man that let a Bijuu loose in our village. As the protector of Konoha, I can do no less than eradicate this threat, before it breaches our walls.”

 

“We will do whatever it is in our power to help you, Hokage-sama,” Homura said respectfully.

 

“Thank you, old friend,” the Sandaime replied, “For now, I only need you to read the dossiers written on the masked man. I have decided to compile separate ones, for the current attacker and for the Kyuubi one, though it seems increasingly likely that they are the same person. Sleep on them, and we shall have another meeting tomorrow, to discuss our perspectives.”

 

A few more details were discussed, namely the time of their next meeting, before his old teammates shuffled out the door. A little more relaxed now, since the conversation had gone well, Hiruzen took out a fresh sheet of paper and an ink well, and began penning a note to his erstwhile student.

 

_ ‘Jiraiya’s expertise with fuuinjutsu will be invaluable when unravelling Danzo’s secrecy seal,’ _ Hiruzen thought, mind flitting to the four Ne operatives that Itachi Uchiha had put into a coma.  _ ‘It’s time that I hide away the peaceful side that my friends so bemoan in me, and ruthlessly uncover all of the secrets in my village.’ _

 

x

 

_ ‘Sh-Shisui, what are… you d-doing?’ the gurgled voice broke, as his katana neatly swept through Miori-san’s jugular. The front of the dying man’s Chuunin vest was dirtied with blood and powdered sugar. Miori-san liked to visit the bakery each day for his favorite glazed apple tarts. _

 

_ ‘Why would you betray the clan?’ Despite his arthritis, Elder Kaoru managed to dodge the first volley. The shuriken pinned his sagging flesh to the wall in the second volley though. ‘Aah! Traitor!’ _

 

_ ‘You chose them over us!’ Blood pooled the streets, and stained his hands. He brought them together for a Shunshin, before Cousin Aoki’s fireballs could reach him. His own Phoenix Sage Fire Technique burned the flesh off of the man’s bones. Shisui blinked away the acrid smoke, and felt his eyes burn.  _

 

_ The four curved spikes of the pinwheel eye spun, but the messy-haired wielder was unaware of this. Shisui’s heart burned with self-loathing, even as he stepped forward into yet another dance of death. _

 

He was too well-trained to scream when he woke up. Instead, his fingers dug deeply enough to the palm of his hand to draw blood, his mouth clamped shut to swallow back bile, and salty tears dripped down his eyes. It was when Shisui was sure that he wouldn’t make a sound, that he raised his face from the pillow and looked around the room. His hair was matted with sweat, the unruly strands even bothering to stay slick against his forehead.

 

Itachi stared back at him soundlessly. Shisui flopped back down on the bed.

 

“I deserve my own hospital room,” he declared in a raspy voice, “I am an important and valuable member of the Uch- Konoha. I am insulted that I have been given only half of a hospital room.”

 

“Less than half,” his cousin’s level voice corrected, “Part of the room has been taken over by gifts from well-wishers.”

 

A mirthless smile crossed his face, as Shisui looked at the tokens of appreciation he had received for killing his own kinsman. “Don’t be humble, Itachi. I’m sure that some of those flowers and chocolates are from your own fangirls.”

 

“Making light of the situation will not help you, Shisui,” there was a soft sigh from Itachi’s direction.

 

Shisui’s eyes rolled back to the ceiling. Blank. White. Bland. “You sound like Aunt Mikoto.”

 

“In fact, I’m sure that you’ll make some woman a wonderful house husband one day,” the messy-haired teen added, a hint of humor entering his voice, “Your girlfriend already wants to be the Hokage. She can aim for the highest position in the village, while you keep house and raise the kids.”

 

“Would you like to talk about it?” Itachi asked compassionately.

 

Shisui sat up on the bed- noting that some lucky nurse had changed him into a hospital-issued gown- and scowled. “What would you know about what I went through?”

 

Itachi blinked. His ink-toned eyes turned into the unique design of the Mangekyou Sharingan.

 

Shisui flopped back down. “Right. Okay. Sorry.”

 

There was a moment of silence, and then he started talking. “I don’t know which one activated it. There were so many people, ‘tachi. So many, and I have a Sharingan that shows I regretted his or her death, but I don’t even know which death activated it! I killed so many- it could be any of them!”

 

“Maybe it was all of them,” Itachi replied listlessly, “Maybe it was none of them, but the idea of killing our family. You’ve always been so loyal to the clan, that I should have known that you ran the risk of activating the Mangekyou. I’m sorry, Shisui.”

 

The messy-haired teen’s voice was downright venomous this time. “Don’t. You. Dare. Itachi. Don’t you dare blame yourself for something that was entirely out of your control. They chose to betray Konoha- they chose to betray  _ our family _ . You can’t possibly blame yourself for preserving the clan’s honor and preventing an even bigger massacre for the Uchiha.” 

 

Shisui was worried, since his younger cousin fell silent at those words. Then, after a few minutes, he spoke.

 

“I see,” Itachi said quietly, “But if I can’t blame myself… then why can you?”

 

x

 

There was an oppressive sense of normalcy hanging over the class today. It was putting Naruto on edge, because for the last three days Shisui had insisted on escorting her to school, but was entirely absent today. Sasuke was absent too, and people noticed that, especially since it was only the second day since he publicly defended Academy deadlast. Then there were the rumors spreading over Konoha, with adults whispering about ‘Uchiha’ and ‘break-ins’, that fell suspiciously silent when any kids wandered by.

 

All of the students were curious about had happened to the Uchiha Clan. And since Naruto apparently was best friends with the Uchiha Matriarch and Heir now…

 

“I don’t know! Okay?” the Uzumaki snapped, her temper not in the least improved by Ami’s demands for information. “Leave me the hell alone!”

 

“Y-yes,” Hinata supported, activating her Byakugan and making one student step back, “P-please leave us alone.”

 

Iruka’s Big Head jutsu was able to discipline the class more effectively, and the blonde was able to sit back, ignore her sensei, and worry about her ANBU. Anxiety gnawed at her stomach, even though she knew that Itachi was strong, and likely to be fine. But whoever broke into the Uchiha Compound had to be strong too, didn’t they? She heard that some Uchiha were killed, and since Shisui was absent…

 

“I can’t wait anymore!” Naruto confessed, once they had relocated to the rooftop. “The day’s not even half over, and I’m going mad with worry.”

 

Shino placed his unopened bento to the side. “This is not surprising. Why? Because you are a caring person, and Itachi Uchiha was your first friend. It is likely that he is being kept in Konoha General.”

 

Naruto’s ocean blue eyes gleamed. “Then I can visit him! But I would have to skip school.”

 

Hinata and Shino exchanged a look. “W-we should go with y-you,” the Hyuuga tentatively said.

 

The blonde’s eyes widened. “Hinata? You want to… break a rule?”

 

“All of the detention tasks are moved over to the weekend,” the Aburame observed, his high collar hiding the smile on his face, “It would be a shame to leave Sasuke Uchiha to go through them alone.” 

 

“A-and we already helped you b-break into a clan c-compound,” Hinata added forlornly. “I broke the law, Naruto-chan.”

 

The Uzumaki beamed. “I knew it wouldn’t take long to corrupt you two!”

 

There was no better time to sneak out of class than now, so Hinata’s Byakugan briefly scanned the grounds, before the three tree-walked down the building. Shino was the one that led the way, because Naruto was still worried about the attack and Hinata was mourning her life as a criminal. Their first obstacle came in the way of a civilian receptionist.

 

“Can I please get the number for Itachi Uchiha’s room?” Naruto angled her head up, and was met with unfriendly hazel eyes.

 

“Sorry kid,” the woman didn’t sound even mildly apologetic, “But the room is visiting list only.”

 

_ ‘So he’s not dead, _ ’ the Uzumaki thought, as relief swept through her body, closely followed by determination. “I- I’m a friend of his. Can you check the list for ‘Naruto Uzumaki’?”

 

“You and every other unattached girl in Konoha,” the woman rolled her eyes, “You’re younger than most though. Do you have any gifts? You can put them in a bin over there. They’ll be collected later in the day, and sent up to Uchiha-san’s room.”

 

“I’m not his girlfriend!” Naruto squeaked, blushing brightly. Behind her, a small growl could be heard from Hinata’s direction. “We’re friends!”

 

The woman looked at her dubiously. “I don’t have time for your lies, kid. Go back to school. There’s no way that your name could be on the list.”

 

None of the three truant Academy students looked likely to be on the visitor’s list for this particular important patient. The Aburame was clearly too young to have run missions with him, the Hyuuga was from a rival clan, and the Uzumaki was a social pariah that would be invisible to Itachi Uchiha. 

 

“Surely it cannot take much to check your list, Receptionist-san,” a deep, cultured voice said disapprovingly. When Hinata gasped, Naruto turned her head around to see a tall man, with stern features, dark brown hair, and pale eyes. Standing next to him was a Branch Member attendant with a bundled child in her arms.

 

“Hyuuga-sama!” the woman stumbled, “My apologies sir, but none of these children could be-”

 

“As I said, it would not take too much time and effort to check,” Hiashi interrupted, looking over to his daughter, “Hinata. I believe you have school now.”

 

The blue-haired girl’s cheeks bled crimson, as she bowed her head. “Yes, Father.”

 

Naruto didn’t take well to a disapproving look aimed at one of her best friends, so she sidled closer to the bluenette. “She came here to support me.”

 

“And you came here to support Itachi Uchiha?” Hiashi asked, a strange undercurrent to his voice. For a second, the Uzumaki almost believed it to be laughter. “I am not surprised that she would follow you here; your father was also a charismatic individual. Hinata will not be punished, as long as this remains a singular event.”

 

“Receptionist-san, have you checked the list yet?” the Hyuuga Head inquired, ignoring the gaping of his daughter and her two friends. 

 

The woman at the desk flushed in embarrassment. “I’ll do it right now, Hyuuga-sama.”

 

She took out a handwritten list given to her by Mikoto Uchiha, and scanned the short list of names. Fourth from the top, after Itachi Uchiha’s immediate family, was a neat scrawl of ‘Naruto Uzumaki’. 

 

“She’s on the list!” the woman exclaimed, looking at the Uzumaki in shock. 

 

Naruto grinned smugly. “Can I have the room number now?”

 

“4C,” the receptionist mumbled, looking down on the list again, and blinking her eyes as though doubting her ability to read, “But none of the others are there.”

 

“That should be fine,” Shino adjusted his glasses, “If I return quickly, then I can attend to the remainder of Iruka-sensei’s lecture on Iwa’s flora and fauna.”

 

“That’s an admirable dedication to your studies, Shino,” Hiashi approved, “Though my daughter will not be joining you. Since she’s here, she can attend Hanabi’s check-up with me.”

 

“Yes Father,” Hinata affirmed happily, before regarding her blonde friend, “Naruto-chan…”

 

“I’ll be fine,” the Uzumaki waved at them, and headed towards the elevator, “If I don’t see you later today, then I’ll tell you everything at lunch tomorrow.”

 

x

 

When Itachi heard a tentative knock on the door, he thought that his Mother and Sasuke must have finished lunch early. Then a messy blonde head poked its way through the door, and he found bright ocean-blue arresting him to his position.

 

“Itachi!” Naruto’s normal volume was a step higher than others, but this was almost a relieved shout as she barrelled in. The dark-haired teen braced his body, expecting her to tackle him into a hug, but was surprised when she skidded to a stop by the bed instead. The Uzumaki offered him a nervous smile, as she awkwardly petted his hand in welcome.

_ ‘Is Naruto Uzumaki finally learning tact?’  _ the teen wondered, strangely disappointed by the underwhelming gesture. “Hello Naruto.”

 

“Hi.” There was a forced grin on her face, that became more genuine as she scanned his body for injuries. “I was worried about you.”

 

Itachi gestured to his bed, and watched the oddly red-faced blonde perch on the end. “Didn’t you get my note?”

 

“What n- what is that?” Naruto’s attention strayed, as Itazura flew through the window. The Uchiha found his interest caught more by the wide-eyed fascination of his friend, than the summoned crow landing in front of her. Itazura lifted his leg, and impatiently cawed, as Naruto didn’t move.

 

“This is Itazura,” Itachi introduced, reaching forward but having the crow hop away from his grasp, “He’s one of my messenger summons, and he refuses to relinquish his notes to anyone but the recipient. He won’t even give them to me.”

 

Naruto’s lips twitched, and she released a giggle at the comically dodging crow. “I can see that.”

 

The blonde reached forward, and Itazura didn’t shy away from her, as she clumsily unwrapped the message. “I thought that summons could talk.”

 

“All of the members of the major tribes can speak the human tongue,” Itachi explained, “A few of my crows can speak, but Itazura isn’t one of them.” 

 

“Well thank you, Itazura,” the Uzumaki placed the note into her pocket, and withdrew her unfinished bento from her bag, “I made some hamburger steak for lunch today. Would you like some Itazura?”

 

While the crow may not have been able to speak Japanese, he clearly understood what ‘hamburger steak’ meant. There was an approving squawk from the omnivorous bird, as it clumsily hopped closer to the blonde’s hand. Soon there was a sizable bit of hamburger steak in his stomach, and Naruto was allowed to tentatively brush her fingers against Itazura’s soft, pitch-black feathers. 

 

“I think you may have stolen my summon,” Itachi observed, amusement coiling in his stomach.

 

“You responded well to food too,” Naruto reminded him, ducking her head down, “Thank you for adding my name to the visitor’s list.”

 

“Visitor’s list? Ah, that explains the peace I’ve had so far. My mother must have made it,” Itachi commented, confused as to why the blonde looked disappointed. “I’m glad that she added you too.”

 

The reminder of what the visitor’s list was for sobered the Uzumaki. “I heard that there was an attack. Is Shisui alright? What happened?”

 

“A masked individual attempted to breach the Uchiha Compound, and killed a few people before we could drive him away,” Itachi explained, feeling apologetic, “I’m sorry, but I don’t think that I’m allowed to say much more.”

 

Naruto wasn’t as disappointed as she had thought she’d be. “I’m just glad that you’re okay.”

 

“Aren’t you glad that I’m okay too, Naruto?” Shisui Uchiha demanded, as he returned from the bathroom. He raised an eyebrow when he saw the blonde perched on his cousin’s bed, rather than the visitor’s chair beside it. “Am I interrupting anythin- oomph!”

 

“Shisui!” Naruto shouted gleefully, jumping off the bed and tackling him. “I’m glad you’re okay!” 

 

_ ‘Her maturity didn’t last long _ ,’ Itachi observed, a minute frown forming on his face. 

 

“Whoa there, Naruto,” the messy-haired teen laughed, hugging her back, “Don’t show so much enthusiasm in front of your boyfriend. I don’t want to be a homewrecker!”

 

“She’s not my/I’m not his girlfriend!” Two voices responded in near-sync, before they looked at one another. The dark-haired teen looked away, a light pink color to his cheeks, while the pale-gold skin of the Uzumaki looked like it had been badly sunburned. Shisui cackled.

 

“This is what you’re making us wait outside the door for, Mom?” Sasuke Uchiha complained, walking in next. He ignored the Uzumaki still clinging to his messy-haired cousin, and headed for the chair by his brother’s bed. “Dobe. What are you doing here?”

 

“Teme,” Naruto replied automatically, releasing the older boy, “I’m here to visit Itachi and Shisui.”

 

“Hello Naruto-chan,” Mikoto said sheepishly, waving at the blonde girl. “Sasuke, what did I tell you about that nickname?”

 

“But Mom, it’s  _ weird  _ to call her Naruto,” the youngest Uchiha whined, looking over at his classmate, “Do you want me to use your first name?” 

 

Naruto considered it, and then made a face. “I honestly prefer dobe from him, Mikoto-obaachan.”

 

“And I don’t ever want to hear ‘Sasuke-kun’ from you,” Sasuke stated firmly, smiling at his mother, “Look on the bright side, Mom. This is practically a bonding moment!”

 

x

 

_ For my previous challenge, the winner was Duner89, who found the two canon quotes inserted into the story. The omake was won, but I’m having some trouble writing it, and will not be posting it in this chapter. There is a short replacement omake below to account for that. By the way, those quotes are: _

 

_ Obitio Uchiha: _ _ The moment people come to know love, they run the risk of carrying hate. _

 

_ Fugaku Uchiha: The way we think is different, but I'm still proud of you… You truly are a gentle child. _

 

Omake

 

After an easy mission that coincided with the end of the school day, Itachi had offered to treat Naruto and Sasuke to a mid-afternoon snack. They were eating at a popular dango stand, when the dark-haired teen realized that his friend was too preoccupied to enjoy her snack.

 

“Naruto, would you like some?” Itachi inquired, seeing the blonde’s ocean blue eyes fastened on his dango stick, and assuming that she hadn’t liked her own flavor choices.

 

“Er, yes?” Naruto was actually staring at the Uchiha’s mouth- an embarrassing habit that she subconsciously fell into when she was daydreaming- but could hardly correct him. “Thank you, Itachi.”

 

_ ‘It’s practically an indirect kiss,’ _ the Uzumaki thought, blushing, as she accepted the treat. There were two brightly coloured pieces of dough left, and she quickly bit off the white one, before returning it. That was when she became aware of four shocked stares in her direction. It was partially due to the awkwardness of the moment, that she snapped at them.

 

“W-what are you looking at?” Naruto scowled, “Do I have something on my face?”

 

Shisui buried his head in his hands. “Best friends since we were five, trained together for hours on end and even taught him his shinobi creed, but I don’t have a single dumpling to show for it.”

 

Kakashi folded his arms together. “I sponsored his entire ANBU career, and taught him the ropes of stealth and covert operations, but he ate an entire box of pocky right in front of me.”

 

Yugao pouted. “I saved his life in our last mission, but he wouldn’t even give me a peppermint.”

 

Sasuke sniffed. “I don’t even care if Mom wants you to marry into the family dobe. I’m not sharing  _ my  _ tomatoes with you.”

 

x


	13. Chapter 13

_ WARNING: MASSIVE SPOILERS AHEAD _

 

x

 

Omake for Angel-Hime-Chan: Jiraiya Meets Itachi for the First Time

 

“Ah, you must be Fugaku’s boy,” the white-haired man with the blatantly fake smile, said, “Please sit down. I haven’t been in the village for a while, and there’s some news that I would like to catch up on. I believe you can help me with that.”

 

“I would be honored to help you, Jiraiya-sama,” Itachi replied, wondering why the revered Sannin had asked for him personally. 

 

“Yeah, I’m sure you will,” the man muttered darkly, before smiling again. “No need to call me Jiraiya-sama, kid. You may not know it, but we’re almost family in a way. Your mother and I share godparent duties for Naruto.”

 

Itachi nodded, relaxing a little. So he wanted to know more about the blonde Uzumaki? The Uchiha could help him there. “Then please ask your questions.”

 

The first ones were innocuous and relevant for a ninja that had been absent from the village for years.

 

“Tell me about the Uchiha Clan’s coup, and your part in it.”

 

The next few were more personal, but understandable for a famous spymaster like Jiraiya.

 

“So the presumed Uchiha thought threatening my goddaughter was a good way to keep you in line? How did you respond to that?”

 

The latter ones were downright intrusive.

 

“And how much money did you make last year?” Jiraiya questioned.

 

Itachi’s normally unflappable calmness was breached. “I beg your pardon?”

 

“Your income after taxes,” the Sannin said impatiently, “You have the base ANBU salary, which is generous, and a 15% cut of all missions taken. What’s your average monthly take?”

 

The Uchiha Heir’s immediate instinct was to refuse to answer, but then his ingrained respect for authority kicked in, and he paused. A mental voice that sounded eerily similar to Shisui insisted that he should respond, and present himself in the best light possible. 

 

“I average six missions a month, with around half being B-ranked and the remainder either A-ranked or, on occasion, S-ranked,” Itachi responded slowly. “Uchiha law requires a quarter of pre-taxed payments to be turned over to the clan, but the remainder is placed in my bank account.”

 

“And you’ve been an ANBU for eight months now,” Jiraiya continued, looking over his papers, “I see. What do you have in terms of expenses?”

 

“I live with my parents, rent-free,” Itachi answered, “They cover my food and housing costs. I pay for my shinobi gear and personal effects.”

 

“Then you’ll have a nice nest egg ready, in a few years,” the Sannin was grudgingly approving, “So you live with your parents now. Do you intend to stay there after you get married?”

 

“Er, no?” was the answer. “I plan to purchase my own home before marriage?”

 

“Don’t make it sound like a question!” Jiraiya barked, “Your health insurance and death benefits?”

 

“I have the standard ninja insurance, including death benefits,” the dark-haired teen hesitantly said.

 

“Switch that to the ANBU standard,” Jiraiya ordered, “It may seem higher now, but the deductibles will decrease exponentially in a few years, and the payout is much better. Now, where do you see yourself in five years?”

 

_ ‘Why does this feel like a job interview?’  _ Itachi thought, starting to get nervous,  _ ‘And why is Naruto’s godfather giving it to me?’  _

 

“I want to become an ANBU Captain in a few years, but plan to transition to the general shinobi forces before my twentieth birthday,” the Uchiha answered, steeling himself. This was a test, and he may not know why Naruto’s godfather was giving it to him, but he didn’t need Shisui there to tell him not to blow it. “When I become the Uchiha Clan Head, I’ll handle Council Meetings and clan-related paperwork, while my father runs the KMPF.”

 

“Do you plan to have children? If so, how many?” 

 

“I would like to have children one day. As many as my wife is comfortable with, I suppose.”

 

“How many sons? How many daughters? What would you name them?”

 

“I would like one of both, but I have not considered this in detail Jiraiya-san.”

 

“How do you feel about women in the shinobi forces? Before marriage? After marriage? After having children?”

 

“I believe that kunoichi are just as capable as shinobi, and make a valuable addition to the military forces,” the Uchiha was starting to suspect where this was heading, “I don’t think marriage should stop them from becoming kunoichi, but they shouldn’t be active members, while pregnant. Afterward, their level of participation depends on the kunoichi in question.”

 

Jiraiya folded his hands below his chin, and stared intensely at the dark-haired teen.

 

With a sweatdrop forming, Itachi continued. “I believe that Naruto would like to continue her career after having children. I’m sure that she’ll accomplish that.”   
  


The Sannin raised an eyebrow. “My goddaughter wants to be the Hokage. How do you feel about women that outrank their husbands in the ninja forces?”

 

“Jiraiya-san,” Itachi really needed to put a stop to this, “I’m not sure what rumors you’ve heard, but I assure you that there’s nothing between your goddaughter and I.”

 

“That’s not what your best friend told me,” Jiraiya countered.

 

_ ‘Shisui, I’m going to skin you alive, _ ’ the dark-haired teen thought. “My cousin was lying, sir.”

 

“Didn’t I tell you to stop being so formal?” the white-haired man scribbled something down in front of him. Itachi’s excellent vision allowed him to see the words ‘poor listener’ on it. 

 

“How much sexual experience have you had?” Jiraiya asked, out of nowhere.

 

Itachi almost choked. “Excuse me?!”

 

“No girlfriends? Oral? Not even a handjob?” the Sannin looked disappointed as he read the answer in the teen’s blushing face. “Well Naruto will be pleased, at least. Here, catch!”

 

Itachi’s hands came up on reflex to grab the book thrown to him. His long association with Kakashi Hatake and the lurid orange cover told him that he was holding Icha Icha. The Uchiha Heir almost dropped it, at the realization that there was porn in his hands. “Jiraiya-san?”

 

“We’ll start off with Chapter Two first,” the white-haired man instructed, taking out his own copy and giving a perverted giggle, “You’re not who I would have chosen, but Kami knows that Kushina would have adored you, and Minato would have respected you. You’re the type of man that he could have trusted his little girl to.”

 

“Thank you?” Itachi didn’t have any romantic intentions towards Naruto, but he couldn’t deny how flattering it was to know that the Yellow Flash would have accepted him as the blonde’s boyfriend. 

 

“Now, as you can see from the look of rapture on Moriki-chan’s face, a woman loves to have her clitoris stimulated…”

 

_ ‘Then again, maybe this is an honor that I can do without, _ ’ the dark-haired teen thought, as Jiraiya started to talk about bondage ropes, safe words, and whipped cream. It was too horrifying not to listen to. And yet strangely intriguing… 

 

x

 

Omake for Aile d’Argent: Naruto’s Birthday 

 

Naruto Uzumaki’s birthday was coming up, and Shisui Uchiha was having a panic attack.

 

“You want to give her  _ what _ as a gift?” Shisui demanded, staring at his remarkably naive and embarrassingly oblivious younger cousin.

 

“High quality kunai polish,” Itachi answered, looking rather pleased with himself, “The brand that she currently uses doesn’t dry quickly enough, and slips through her hands. Since Naruto’s accelerated healing makes it difficult to form calluses, she’ll need better polish to account for the weakened grip.”

 

“As I suspected, it doesn’t sound any better the second time around,” the messy-haired Uchiha groaned, “Itachi, you know what Naruto is, don’t you?”

At the younger teen’s puzzled tilt of head, Shisui held back a second groan. “A girl, Itachi. She’s a girl.”

 

_ ‘And one that has the misfortune to be attracted to a romantic idiot, _ ’ he mentally added.  

 

“And do girls not require shinobi tools?” Itachi questioned, an eyebrow raised challengingly.

 

“Of course, they do! But you’re always buying shinobi-related gifts for her, and while I’m sure that she appreciates it, a birthday gift is supposed to be special,” Shisui argued, “I’m not saying that it can’t have a utilitarian purpose, but it should also be something pretty, that she can show off. Girls love to show gifts off.”

 

“I have never seen Naruto brag about them,” the Uchiha heir said doubtfully.

 

“That’s because she hasn’t had many gifts to brag about,” Shisui mentally calculated the time available before October 10th. “Okay, so you need to purchase something suitably attractive and feminine, but also appropriate to her age. No makeup or elaborate jewelry, and I’m vetoing all flowers until we have a full account of her allergies. There’s nothing more embarrassing than giving an armful of lilies to a pretty girl, and then having her face turn into a puffed, sniveling, and rash-filled terror, as she attacks you. Or so I’ve been told.”

 

“Are you sure Naruto wouldn’t want the kunai polish?” Itachi asked hopefully. The blonde took her training rather seriously, and the Uchiha didn’t want her to get hurt from using slippery kunai. 

 

“We’ll add that to the gift,” Shisui allowed, “Now come on! Kusa has the best craftsman, and if we can get a short-term B-rank mission there today, then we’ll be back with plenty of time before her birthday! You can consider yourself very lucky to have your older cousin here to guide you, Itachi.”

 

“I still think my kunai polish gift is a good one,” the other teen mumbled, but followed behind.

 

A few days later, they were settled on the floor of the Uchiha living room, where Mikoto had insisted on throwing a small party. With bellies full of cake and other sweets- or, in Sasuke’s case, fresh tomatoes and onigiri- they were ready for the birthday girl to open her presents.

 

Naruto had never received many gifts while growing up, so she reacted to each gift with genuine thankfulness. After setting Shisui’s shogi set aside, and hugging him in thanks, she picked up a small box wrapped in ocean-themed paper. Itachi’s graceful lettering on the side caused her blue eyes to widen, and there was an increased gentleness, as she unwrapped it.

 

_ To Naruto: I hope that this is the first of many future birthday wishes to come. Your friend, Itachi. _

 

Inside was a finely carved hair comb made of rich auburn lacquered wood. Painted on the top was a delicate swirl of blue and white flowers. The bottom caps of the comb’s teeth glistened slightly, and Naruto recognized that they would be hollow, for her to fill with a poison or paralytic. The gift was practical and useful, but also beautiful and feminine.

 

“Oh, what a thoughtful gift!” Mikoto exclaimed, “Would you like to me to put in on you Naruto?”

 

The blonde nodded jerkily, surprised pleasure thrumming inside of her as the dark-haired woman unpinned her blonde hair from its pigtails, and pulled it into a messy bun. She could feel the slight weight of the elegant hair piece against her head, and tried to meet Itachi’s gaze, so she could convey how absolutely  _ wonderful _ his gift was.

 

Only Itachi was looking away, the barest hint of a frown on his lips. And when Naruto’s eyes moved the smug, messy-haired Uchiha to the cannister of kunai polish also in the wrapping paper, she understood why. Itachi Uchiha was brilliant and sweet and could make her heart flip over without even trying, but he was _ not _ a romantic.

 

“This is a great gift, Itachi!” Naruto chimed, trying to gain his attention, “I love the kunai polish!”

 

There were several exclamations of surprise, though Shisui’s indignant  _ ‘excuse me?! _ ’ was most memorable. The Uzumaki ignored this, and her flushed cheeks, as she reached forward to hug the dark-haired teen.

 

“My hands can’t form calluses well, so having good kunai polish is really important,” the blonde babbled on, “I’ve never tried this brand before, but I’m sure that it’ll be just what I need. It’s very thoughtful of you to look out for my safety, Itachi!”

 

Then, because it was her birthday, and she wanted to give a gift to herself, Naruto leaned up and quickly pressed her lips to Itachi’s cheek. After that, Mikoto’s excited squealing and Sasuke’s fake retching made the rest of the present-opening somewhat anticlimactic.

 

x

 

Omake for Kathleen: Itachi Handles the Kids

 

Hikaru Uchiha was a very sweet and well-behaved boy, which was why it was so strange to see him scowl down at his breakfast this morning. Then again, the meal was his Father’s decent omelette and rice balls, rather than his Mother’s delicious homemade ramen.

 

“Does Mom  _ have _ to go on the Suna mission?” Hikaru whined, putting a forkful of egg into his mouth.

 

“Hikaru, Uchiha do not speak when their mouths are full,” Itachi reminded him absently, and then paused. The dark-haired man grimaced. He was turning into his father.

 

“Dada more!” At fourteen months old, Kurama Uchiha was a little genius that could almost speak in full sentences and understood that her father was fully wrapped around her little finger. Also wrapped around that little finger was her godfather, the Kyuubi. “Wanna have more!”

 

“Why does Kurama get to have pudding for breakfast?” Seichi, his second born child and the only one to inherit his maternal grandmother’s violet eyes, asked, “I want pudding for breakfast too Dad.”

 

“Seichi, Uchiha do not whine,” Itachi said reflexively. Then he cringed. 

 

“You sound like Grandpa Fugaku now,” Hikaru pointed out, and then bit into a rice ball. Itachi sent his eldest child a baleful glance.

 

“Hikaru, why are you so upset this morning?” his Father asked. When he saw the guilty shift of his eldest son, he knew that he would have to press on. “Hikaru?”

 

“Hikaru-nii got detention today!” Seichi tattled gleefully. “Hey- Dad!”

 

“Seichi, you shouldn’t have answered your brother’s question, and Hikaru, don’t hit your younger brother,” Itachi reprimanded, putting another spoonful of vanilla pudding into the easily pleased Kurama’s mouth. Honestly, sometimes he wondered why his sons couldn’t be as peaceful as his Kurama-chan. He also wondered where the younger sibling hero worship was; Seichi certainly didn’t treat Hikaru, like Sasuke had treated him. 

 

“Hikaru, how did you get a detention?” This was surprising too- his son had inherited his respect for authority and academic drive, rather than Naruto’s.

 

“Threw a paintball at the sensei’s face,” Hikaru ducked his head down, and his cheeks reddened in shame. “I just wanted him to stop kissing up to me because of who my family was.”

 

The Uchiha Patriarch blinked. “Strange. Your mother gained her first detention the exact same way.”

 

“Really?” Hikaru immediately perked up. He loved both of his parents, but it was Naruto that he idolized. Itachi didn’t mind; he shared his son’s opinion.

 

“Hm, your Uncle Sasuke got his first detention after he defended your mother from a rumor,” Itachi continued, “Uncle Shisui received his first one for putting sneezing powder on the chalkboard erasers.”

 

Seichi looked impressed. “And what did you do, Dad?”

 

“I listed to my senseis and followed the rules,” Itachi responded, “I graduated early, at the top of my class, and didn’t receive a single detention in my entire academic career.”

 

Hikaru was disgusted. “That sounds so boring, Dad. You really are like Grandfather Fugaku.”

 

Itachi cringed. Again.

 

x

 

Omake for NostalgicBeauty, Kitty Kat Vixen, and Sakiraa-chan: Itachi and the Art of Jealousy

 

Naruto Uzumaki grew up to be a frankly stunning young woman. The characteristics that she had so despaired of in her younger years, from her neon yellow hair to her eerily bright eyes to the whisker marks on her cheeks, had matured into an exotic beauty. Her features remained distinct and striking, but she was more at ease with them now that she knew they resembled her parents. And when people as attractive as Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki had a child, then it became unsurprising that their adorable little girl would grow up into a breathtakingly beautiful young woman.

 

This was an open secret around Konoha. Another open secret? Itachi Uchiha had recognized that beauty as early as when Naruto was seven. And should anyone else comment on it, they would be faced with a pointed gaze from one of Konoha’s most powerful and intimidating shinobi.

 

Konoha knew this. Taki did not. 

 

Now the sixteen-year-old Jounin was on a diplomatic mission with her boyfriend in Takigakure. Itachi was currently overviewing evacuation protocols, while Naruto had agreed to check over their defense seal structure, and offer any suggestions about improvement. They couldn’t allow a Konoha Jounin to do this alone of course, so a Taki ninja was assigned to help her around.

 

He was a dark-haired teen named Takeshi, and he was rather interested in the exotic blonde.

 

“So I’ve heard that you visited Takigakure before,” Takeshi said easily. He was a handsome young man, with a friendly smile and kind brown eyes. “Did you like it?”

 

“I did!” Naruto replied exuberantly, “The underwater cave system was incredible, and the little shops tucked into the wooden nooks of the village are charming. You live in such a beautiful village.”

 

“Well, all of mother nature could fade against a woman’s natural beauty,” the dark-haired man said easily. “But I’m sure that you’re aware of this.”

 

The blonde was oblivious to this. “I’m not sure I can agree with you. The waterfalls, fresh springs, and wildflowers make this the perfect location for a thriving wildlife. One of my best friends, Shino, might have fallen in love with Takigakure in his last visit… or maybe that was Fu?”

 

“I’m glad that he has something to bring him back to my fair village,” Takeshi commented, leaning closer and looking hopeful, “I wonder if someone else could be the same draw for you?”

 

“Oh, Fu and I are friends too,” the Uzumaki assured, scanning the seal-inscribed walls, “Can you bring me to the western walls? There are linking seals here, but I need to see the other end to make sure they work properly.”

 

“Of course. You’re very talented with fuuinjutsu,” Takeshi tried, making the blonde duck her head down modestly, “Natural talent or hard work?”

 

“A little of both, but I was mostly lucky to have such a great teacher,” Naruto answered.

 

“Oh, beautiful, smart,  _ and _ modest,” Takeshi teased, grasping his chest, “Anymore, and I think I’ll fall head over heels, beyond any medic-nin’s power.”

 

“Huh? Are you sick?” the blonde Jounin panicked. The Takigakure shinobi had to quickly assure that he wasn’t, in fact, dying.

 

The rest of their talk progressed like this. Takeshi would hint towards more than platonic feelings, while Naruto would happily respond to the strong overtures of friendship. By the time the seals had been checked and they had reassembled at Shibuki’s home, the dark-haired Tokubetsu Jounin was despondent from the unintentional rejections.

 

He decided to try one more time. “Naruto Uzumaki, I think that you must be the most beautiful woman that I’ve ever seen.”

 

Before she could reply, another voice interjected. “I agree.”

 

Takeshi’s mouth dropped open when the Ryuujin no Kage, Itachi Uchiha, slipped past him, and put his arm around the blonde’s waist. Naruto Uzumaki lit up when she saw the older man, and Itachi offered the gaping Taki ninja a mirthless smile. Then he leaned forward and gave her a kiss that was  _ most definitely _ not platonic. 

 

_ ‘You meet an amazing girl, and she happens to be the girlfriend of a monster of a ninja,’ _ Takeshi sighed, depressed, ‘ _ Itachi Uchiha is one lucky man. _ ’

 

Had Itachi Uchiha cared to listen then he would have agreed.

 

x

 

Omake for Moon Phoenix Yukira: Naruto and the Art of Jealousy

 

Girls were unusually clumsy around him. Itachi was well aware of that. His mother had raised him to be a gentleman. Itachi abided by that.

 

Therefore, when an unfamiliar woman slipped on perfectly level ground, Itachi didn’t second guess his reaction. His arms flashed out to gracefully catch the falling figure, his hands moved to steady her position, and, with an indifferent face, his head nodded absently to accept her simpering gratitude. He moved on. Life moved on.

 

Naruto saw that action. It was not unfamiliar to her, but she did not move on.

 

The dark-haired man was puzzled when he saw that his girlfriend was upset. He asked her what was wrong; she refused to answer. He used all of Shisui’s tried-and-true apologies: flowers- her favorite blue forget me nots and white lilies- chocolates, and jewelry. He took her to Ichiraku Ramen, but she insisted on paying for her own share.

 

That was disturbing. Naruto never refused free food.

 

“Can you at least tell me what I did wrong?” Itachi asked. “I can’t change my behavior, unless I know why you’re upset.”

 

Naruto gaped at him. “I- you- ugh, you’re so frustrating!”

 

He had thought that their weekly date would be canceled as a result, but she was opening her apartment door when he called. Itachi’s ink-toned eyes rapidly shifted into the Sharingan when he saw her. His girlfriend was usually well-dressed when they went out, but this was an image that he wanted to keep perfectly emblazoned in his mind.

 

An orange-gold cocktail dress with a tight bodice, sweetheart neckline, and sheer back. She chose to compliment it with the golden necklace that he had bought her recently and the ear studs from their first anniversary. When Naruto saw the Sharingan appear, a smug grin crossed her face.

 

“What do you think?” The Uzumaki gave a twirl. Itachi paid very close attention.

 

“You look beautiful,” Itachi said, because it was true, and a gentleman wouldn’t relate the other words crossing his mind.

 

Naruto bit her lip. “Better than the woman that fell on you last week?”

 

“What woman?” the Uchiha asked. It seemed like the right answer, because she beamed, pulled him closer, and drew him into a brilliant kiss.

 

Then she stepped back, and a sheepish expression crossed her face. “I’m sorry for acting so silly for the last few days.”

 

“It’s fine,” Itachi assured. He was mostly just relieved that the strange mood had passed. “Why don’t we skip the dinner reservations and stay here? I can cook you a meal instead.”

 

“That sounds like a good idea.” Her eyes were lit up in mischief, “But after that look, I think I need you to do something  _ else _ for me first.”

 

There was another girl and another slippery step. Itachi caught her before she fell. Then Naruto was there, to slip a delicate pale-gold hand into his own, and smile at the other woman. The Uchiha could barely respond to the posed figure or gushed thanks, as his attention shifted to the warm, lithe body pressed to his side. Itachi was dragged away, and life moved on.

 

Then Shisui made an offhanded mention about the amount of Valentine’s Day chocolate that Itachi received- even now- and Naruto was inexplicably upset again. The Uchiha wondered if maybe he should have offered to share the sweets instead.

 

x


End file.
